Quality measurement of Croatian public and academic libraries: a methodology

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present the proposed methodology for the first scientific project to evaluate Croatian academic and public library services.

Design/methodology/approach

The project shown in the paper will: collect statistical data on state‐of‐the‐art in libraries, as well as public and academic library staff opinions on evaluation activities in their libraries; define dimensions of effectiveness that will differentiate academic and public libraries; show differences in views between library management and staff; and encourage more positive attitude of library staff toward evaluation activities.

Findings

The paper finds that the possible obstacles to creating a positive climate for performance measurement in the Croatian library and information science community might be, among other things: insufficient number of staff, inexperience and lack of skills needed for data collection and processing, lack of motivation, fear of being made redundant, etc. This project will hopefully help uncover all the weak spots of Croatian library community. However, certain problems are anticipated in getting Croatian librarians to express their real opinions.

Practical implications

The project is considered of utmost importance for the Croatian LIS community because it will not only describe the present situation, but it will also draw attention to evaluation topics preparing librarians by the means of a set of workshops and an evaluation manual designed especially for Croatian library community for systematic and dedicated work on measurement and improvement of library services.

Originality/value

The paper shows that this is the first project of its type in Croatia.

Citation

Petr, K. (2007), "Quality measurement of Croatian public and academic libraries: a methodology", Performance Measurement and Metrics, Vol. 8 No. 3, pp. 170-179. https://doi.org/10.1108/14678040710841045