Perspectives on E-books from Instructors and Students in the Social Sciences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5860/rusq.51n3.278Abstract
To explore attitudes toward e-books, the authors conducted focus groups at Colorado State University with instructors (7) and graduate students (12) from four social science disciplines. Participants provided insights into their use of print and electronic texts, their attitudes toward patron-driven e-book purchasing, potential barriers to e-book use and acceptance, and how they view the academic library within the context of their own research needs. The paper includes a review of relevant literature and use studies. It will be useful to academic librarians and administrators concerned with patron-driven and e-book purchasing.
References
Apart from the EBL patron-driven purchasing program, librarian selectors may add EBL titles to the collection in lieu of purchasing print or other electronic format firm order titles. These titles need not meet the EBL profile criteria. Additionally, e-format is preferred for select areas of the Libraries’ approval plan and these titles may be added to the collection on specifically the EBL platform.nRafael Ball, '“E-Books in Practice: The Librarian's Perspective,”' Learned Publishing 22 no. 1 (2009): 18-22nConnaway and Wicht, “What Happened to the E-Book Revolution?” “Barriers to E-Book Adoption,” para. 2.nBall, “E-Books in Practice.”nConnaway and Wicht, “What Happened to the E-Book Revolution?” “Barriers to E-Books Adoption,” para. 6.n 'Ibid., para. 7. The 2011 edition of the Primary Research Group's “Library Use of Ebooks” report presents useful insights into current library practices related to e-books. While the number of libraries sampled is limited, participating libraries report on such issues as current spending on e-books, the acquisition of e-book reading devices, and e-books collection building plans. Primary Research Group' Library Use of Ebooks (New York: Primary Research Group 2010)nMichael Levine-Clark, '“Developing a Multiformat Demand-Driven Acquisition Model,”' Collection Management 35 no. 3/4 (2010): 206nSarah Thompson, '“User-Driven Purchasing: A Pilot Project to Test an Alternative Pricing Model for Springer E-Book Collections,”' Serials 23, no 2 (2010): 135nDracine Hodges, Cyndi Preston, Marsha J. Hamilton, '“Patron-Initiated Collection Development: Progress of a Paradigm Shift,”' Collection Management 35 no. 3/4 (2010): 208-21nIbid., 219.nEdward W. Walton, '“From the ACRL 13th National Conference: E-Book Use Versus Users’ Perspective,”' College & Undergraduate Libraries 14 no. 4 (2007): 25nWouter van der Velde, Olaf Ernst, '“The Future of Ebooks? 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