Library Statistics Cooperative Program

This is the fourth in a series of reports evaluating the Public Library Statistics (PLS) program, an annual census of public libraries in the United States. The census includes, in addition to a full count of public libraries and their outlets, a variety of statistics about the services provided by and, the financial condition and the staffing levels of public libraries. This report contains the results of an evaluation of the definitions and internal consistency of the staffing variables and a comparison of the statistics collected for these variables to selected statistics from independent sources. This evaluation was conducted to raise specific issues for discussion among members of the Federal State Cooperative System for Public Library Data. Chapter 1 evaluates the definitions used for the staff variables, while Chapter 2 considers the internal consistency of staff measures. Chapter 3 compares statistics from the public library census to those from other reference sources for public library staffing information. Four appendixes list the variables, libraries without paid staff, and library reports and directories, and present comparisons of dataset and other figures. (Contains 70 references and 14 tables.) (SLD)

This report reflects the results of an evaluation of the definitions used in the annual Public Library Statistics (PLS) program, a joint federal-state information collection project, and is intended to raise specific issues for discussion among the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the Federal State Cooperative System (FSCS), and the states concerning these definitions. Definitions are given for four categories of variables for which statistics are collected: outlets, staff, collections, and services. The statistics for each variable measure the number of occurrences at the individual public library level, and permit aggregations at the state and national levels. Each subsection of variables contains: (1) the FSCS definition, including any prior changes that are useful in the definition's analysis; (2) the state definition and comparison to the FSCS definition; (3) data describing what the statistics indicate about how the definition is applied; and (4) issues describing any problems in the definition or its application. In addition, each subsection provides a brief background description for the general category, the variables, and the products or services the PLS census is attempting to measure. (Contains 66 references and 20 tables.) (MAS)