We report a comparison of the 1/T 1 spin lattice relaxation rates (SLR) for 9 Li and 8 Li in Pt and SrTiO 3 , in order to differentiate between magnetic and electric quadrupolar relaxation mechanisms. In Pt, the ratio of the 1/T 1 spin relaxation rates R Pt was found to be 6.82(29), which is close to but less than the theoretical limit of ∼ 7.68 for pure magnetic relaxation. In SrTiO 3 this ratio was found to be 2.7(3), which is close but larger than the theoretical limit of ∼ 2.14 expected for pure electric quadrupolar relaxation. These results bring new insight into the nature of the fluctuations in the local environment of implanted 8 Li observed by β -NMR.