Using Undergraduate Marketing Students in an Unobtrusive Reference Evaluation.

Abstract

This article describes an unobtrusive survey of reference services conducted at Central Missouri State University's library. The survey was part of a larger assessment of reference services. A senior-level marketing research class adopted the study as a for-credit class project. Students were instructed to engage in two separate reference transactions and to complete a fourteen-item survey for each, rating staff service. Following this, groups of students met in focus groups to discuss their experiences and the library in general. Overall, 74 percent of the reference transactions were rated as satisfactory or very satisfactory. Marketing students are an ideal student group for conducting subjective surveys, as they understand the theories and pitfalls of the methodology. The study provided valuable baseline data that will gain more significance when it is repeated

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