Purpose & Goals

Purpose:

The COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally altered the landscape of education and information access, forcing libraries and IT departments to adapt rapidly. This research aims to understand the lasting impact of these changes on user perceptions and usage of library and IT services.

Goals:

• Identify significant shifts in user importance and satisfaction ratings for library and IT services pre- and post-pandemic based on MISO data. This will reveal which services have gained or lost user significance and satisfaction in the new educational landscape.
• Examine the persistence of pandemic-induced trends. The study will determine if the "massive dislocations" observed during the pandemic, such as increased reliance on digital resources, are temporary blips or represent long-term shifts in user behavior.
• Provide valuable insights for library and IT decision-making. By understanding user priorities and evolving trends, libraries and IT departments can strategically adjust service offerings, resource allocation, and communication strategies to better serve their communities.
• Contribute to understanding the long-term impact of the pandemic on higher education and information services. This research will be valuable for understanding not just changes in specific services, but also broader trends in user expectations and preferences within the post-pandemic academic environment.

Design & Methodology

This presentation investigates changes in benchmarks and trends for Library and Information Technology (IT) services using the Measuring Information Service Outcomes Survey (MISO). MISO, a comprehensive survey tool established in 2005, gathers data on user use, importance and satisfaction with library and IT services across various institutions. The study leverages MISO data collected before and after the COVID-19 pandemic to identify significant shifts and emerging trends. The methodology involves a two-phase approach:

• Phase 1: Pre-Pandemic Baseline Analysis
  • Researchers will select MISO survey data from a defined period preceding the pandemic (e.g., 2018-2020 pre pandemic).
  • They will analyze the data to establish pre-pandemic benchmarks for various service categories within libraries and IT departments. ○ This analysis will focus on user importance ratings (how crucial users consider specific services) and user satisfaction ratings (how well services meet user needs).
• Phase 2: Post-Pandemic Trend Analysis
  • Researchers will examine MISO data collected after the pandemic's onset (e.g., 2022–2024).

By comparing this data to the pre-pandemic benchmarks, the study will identify significant changes in user importance and satisfaction ratings. This will reveal emerging trends in service usage and user priorities in the post-pandemic landscape. The analysis will examine statistically significant differences (p < .01) and effect sizes between pre- and post-pandemic data. It will explore these changes at the individual service level and identify macro level trends spanning across many service points.

Conclusions

This research, utilizing MISO’s rich dataset, presents a unique opportunity to understand the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on user perceptions and usage of library and IT services. We will be gathering data through spring of 2024, and aim to provide valuable insights from the most recent data. Understanding pandemic-induced shifts in user importance and satisfaction will allow institutions to adapt their services, resource allocation, and communication strategies to better serve their constituents in the evolving educational environment. We will enter this study with the following hypotheses:

Hypothesis 1: Differential Impact Across User Groups We expect the impact of the pandemic on library and IT service usage to vary across different user groups (e.g., faculty, students).

Sub-hypothesis 1a: Faculty Reversion Faculty members who adopted new library and IT services due to the pandemic may revert back to pre-pandemic usage patterns to a greater extent than students.

Sub-hypothesis 1b: Student Persistence ("Stickier" Changes) Students who entered college after adjusting to remote learning in high school may demonstrate more persistent changes in their library and IT service usage post-pandemic compared to students who experienced traditional in-person learning before college.

Implications & Value

This research has the potential to add valuable data and insights to the ongoing dialogue about the long-term impact of the pandemic on higher education. The findings can inform future research on user behavior, service delivery models, and technology adoption within educational institutions. By understanding the evolving post-pandemic user landscape and its implications, libraries, IT departments, and higher education institutions can adapt their strategies and optimize their services to better serve current and future generations of learners.

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