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This paper aims to describe the results of three rounds of secret shopping conducted at the Hubert Library of Florida International University, and how the results affected and were affected by changes made to circulation desk student training programs.

Volunteers from the campus community asked circulation desk work‐study students preformulated questions, in person or by phone, and recorded both the answers and service quality perceptions for analysis.

Analysis of the results revealed that the program did what it was designed to do: highlight customer service strengths and weaknesses. A majority of shoppers reported favourable experiences, but identified problematic areas and situations to be addressed in student worker training.

Some of the most valuable data came from secret shoppers' comments, which made clear the need to revisit some of the questions. In some instances shoppers' desires to highlight the positive and deemphasize the negative indicated apparent bias.

This study shows how a secret shopping program can guide and fine‐tune a library student training program as opposed to a librarian or library staff training program.

This chapter provides an overview of affect, personality, and job satisfaction, focusing on library employees. A reliable and valid measure for each construct is suggested, and an assessment model is provided. The purpose of the study conducted was to examine the three constructs among library employees, how these constructs relate to each other and to work experience, and whether they differ based on library type or department. The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, Big Five Inventory, and Brief Index of Affective Job Satisfaction were administered at the various libraries of a research university. Data were analyzed using statistical software. Library employees scored high in positive affect and job satisfaction, and low in negative affect, and were introverted, agreeable, conscientious, emotionally stable, and open to experiences. Across all libraries, public services employees had higher positive affect and job satisfaction, and lower neuroticism, than technical services employees. In both service areas, positive affect was positively correlated with extroversion and job satisfaction, and negative affect with neuroticism. Work experience was correlated with positive affect only among technical services employees. The assessment model may be applied at libraries of any type and size to assess staff and customize resources for employees to meet their unique needs. Several ideas and applications are provided. This study addresses a gap in the literature by exploring how affect, personality, and job satisfaction are all related among library employees. The free measures may be used in any work setting, facilitating intra- and inter-professional comparisons.

With the rise of virtual library users and a steady increase in digital content, it is imperative that libraries build websites that provide seamless access to key resources and services. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Usability testing is a valuable method for measuring user habits and expectations, as well as identifying problematic areas for improvement within a website.

In this paper, the authors provide an overview of user experience research carried out on the University of Toronto Scarborough Library website using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative research methods and detail insights gained from subsequent data analysis.

In particular, the authors discuss methods used for task-oriented usability testing and card sorting procedures using pages from the library website. Widely applicable results from this study include key findings and lessons learned from conducting usability testing in order to improve library websites.