Complexity of reference consultations for undergraduate and graduate students in an academic library

Abstract

Effective resource allocation is critical for academic libraries that offer reference consultations and information literacy instruction to support student success. The study aims to examine the time spent and the intensity and variation in information resource use across 671 reference consultations provided to undergraduate and graduate students at the Czech National Library of Technology, categorized by complexity levels. A case study methodology with quantitative analysis, including descriptive statistics and correlation tests, was applied. The results indicate that simple consultations require more extensive involvement of information resources with an emphasis on basic information literacy, while higher grades of consultations involve fewer resources but more frequent use of full-text databases. It is also shown that information resources are used consistently, with usage patterns reflecting the complexity of users’ assignments and questions. The analysis shows that there is a significant relationship between consultation complexity and both the time spent providing a consultation (correlation coefficient 0.276) and the time spent preparing for the consultation (correlation coefficient 0.262). The results suggest the need for strategic planning of human resources based on service complexity to increase the efficiency of consultations, as well as more conscious decision making regarding the use of information resources in consultation services. Acknowledgment The authors are grateful for the invaluable support provided by the Czech National Library of Technology during the research process. The research data offered were extremely helpful and have been essential to complete this research successfully.