Proceedings of the International Conference on Scientific Information Two Volumes (1959) / Chapter Skim
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Information and Literature Use in a Research and Development Organization
Information and Literature Use in a Research and Development Organization
Pages 131-162
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From page 131... ...
ROLAND SMITH ABSTRACT. A uniform sample drawn from three arbitrary status grades of applied scientists (Research Managers, Senior stay, and.Tunior staff)
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From page 132... ...
Less than half the sample bought their own books, one-third bought their own journals: average spending per head in the past year was £4 on books, £2 on journals. Ofthe 14 days' reading, no references were required for 40~0 of it; of the remainder, colleagues recommended Who, the diarists' memory or knowledge accounted for Who, the library provicled references for Who, references in other publications were Who, and abstract journals (and the library catalogue for books)
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From page 133... ...
These laboratories have their own programmes of research and development, coordinated from Risley, where there is an advisory service. The works which they Coin have, apart from wide geographic scattering, a common characteristic in their very recent origin (the first establishment dates only from 1946, and elsewhere construction still continues)
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From page 134... ...
(i) Their suggestions for new, and criticisms of existing library services; together with their formal qualifications and field of research.
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From page 135... ...
From these, as in the pilot, those doing administrative or quasi-administrative work were deducted, together with those who took part in the pilot. The scientists on the six establishments' nominal rolls were then separately sorted into three arbitrary status grades: Grade ~ represented the Research Management, Grade 2 the Senior scientific, technological, and experimental personnel, and Grade 3 the Junior scientific, technological, and experimental staff.
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From page 136... ...
were conducted by a single interviewer, chosen from the junior scientific staff of Risley Library by the Group Training Department. The same interviewer was used for both the pilot and main surveys, and he was thoroughly briefed on both occasions by one of the present authors.
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From page 137... ...
they were unable to read at work. 17% of them did not know, but the remaining 83~o gave the following average figures, which, if any great value is placed upon the reading of scientific and technical literature, reveal a very unhealthy situation, most serious in the higher status grades: Research Managers Senior grade Junior grade 35 weeks (76% of working year of 46 weeks)
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From page 138... ...
Analysis according to the status grade showed that this had little influence upon the answers, except that 100% of the Research Managers rated "Contacts with others," "Books," "Reports," and "Committee Minutes" higher than the other two Grades, and the two-thirds of them who answered rated "Information from the Library" lower than did the other two Grades. To sum up, therefore, it was conclusively demonstrated that the literature occupied a virtually preeminent place as source of applied research information, regardless of either the status or formal training of those in the sample, a place shared only by the personal contacts with other workers in their field.
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From page 139... ...
~ / c,~ —~ ~~ i,,, ~ A,,, ~ ] v v_ _ ~ ——— ~ ~ ~ ~ u 66% said they sometimes did their own TABLE 2 Per cent of status grade who: Always do their own literature searches Sometimes do their own literature searches Never do their own literature searches Never do or need literature searches Research Management grade, ~0 o 33 67 o Senior grade' % 14 75 9 2 Junior grade, % 31 64 3 2 Those who sometimes did their own searches (redo)
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From page 140... ...
~ ~ 1 own indexes IS given here. According to their status grade the percentages were: of Research Management grade, 33~0; of Senior grade, Who; of Junior grade, 59%.
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From page 141... ...
HOGG and SMITH Information and Literature Use < \ /K j)
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From page 142... ...
a fortnightly accessions list of books received, also under broad subject headings, without abstracts; (c) a weekly accessions list of British reports, listed in groups under their originators, with an appendix of U.S.A.
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From page 143... ...
the requests for more specialized lists, or lists specially marked for individuals, ah point to the need still further to sharpen selection and thereby to save the time of users.
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From page 144... ...
Though it is evident, and not surprising, that the Research Managers spent per head considerably more than the other two grades together, it is interesting that the Senior and Junior grades spent about the same, with much the same proportions, i.e., about 50~0, doing the spending.
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From page 145... ...
HOGG and SMITH Information and Literature Use ¢ Y ~ ~ c ~ :)
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From page 146... ...
The greatest use of British research periodicals was made equally by the engineers, and the physicists and mathematicians; the greatest use of the foreign ones by the biologists. Of technological journals, the engineers made most use of the British, and the chemists made most use of the foreign ones.
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From page 147... ...
Fifty-eight per cent ot the sample offered a valuation in one or more foreign languages, having either opinions or experience, the 42% remaining having either no opinions or making no use of foreign-language periodicals. These 42~o were made up of one-quarter of the whole Senior status grade and over half of the Junior grade, a somewhat disquieting state of affairs.
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From page 148... ...
148 Determining Literature and Reference Needs of Scientists AREA ~ to to to on to so ° 3 z 0 us 0 0 .
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From page 149... ...
. Here two check marks could be used: one to show that the abstract journal was being used to locate or identify past literature, the other when it was being used to keep abreast of recent developments.
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From page 150... ...
Only 32% of the scientists consulted any abstract journal at all. In the absence of further information it is not possible to reach firm conclusions on why this should be so, but it may be because few of the libraries circulate abstracts (keeping them principally for use in the library)
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From page 151... ...
and the chemists (with 45~0~. Table 7 shows the titles of Abstract journals consulted, with the number of consultations according to the fields of research of the diarists.
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From page 152... ...
bulletin British Non-Ferrous Metals Research Assoc., Bulletin Ceramic Abstracts Chemical Abstracts Corrosion Electronic and Radio ~ngl~leer Engineering Index Engineer's Digest Index to literature on spectrochemical analysis Iron and Steel Institute, [ournal Determining Literature and Reference Needs of Scientists AREA ~ Biology 3 Chemistry and chemical engineering Engineering Metallurgy 11 11 2 2 1 2 2 1 l 1 2 Physics and mathe matics Tota I 11 l 2 5 1 16 3 2 2 4 1 3 1 4 2 10 Journal of Applied l l Chemistry Light Metals Bulletin l 1 Metallurgical Abstracts 9 4 13 Nickel Bulletin 4 3 1 8 Nuclear Science Abstracts 2 8 5 l 6 22 Production Engineering 5 2 3 10 Research Assoc. Bulletin Physics Abstracts 3 1 2 2 8 Titanium Abstracts 2 l 3 Vacuum 2 2 The large figure for "initiative of seniors or colleagues" is mainly attributable to reports, of which a very large number are normally sent by authors direct to all those concerned in a project (quite independently of the library)
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From page 153... ...
, or was the diarist's private property (judo' 6%,and 15% respectively, vice 4.04) , it would appear that the "no reference involved" figure should have been even higher: allowance must, however, be made for some confusion of marking between the two columns "Where literature obtained" and "How reference to it was found." The small proportion of references obtained from abstract journals (sharing lowest place with the library card catalogue)
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From page 154... ...
O Hughes, an operational research worker at the Springfields Laboratories of the Industrial Group, for statistical advice.on scoring of the questionnaire and phrasing of the questionnaire and the diary, and for undertaking a large part of the laborious work of analysis of completed results; to Mr.
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From page 155... ...
G A survey of the reading habits of scientific and technical staff at the Royal Aircraft Establishment.
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From page 156... ...
Consulting relevant Committee Minutes (14) Consulting relevant reports and Committee technical papers X 6 5 4 3 2 1 X O 654 321 X O 654 321 X O 654 321 X O 6 5 4 X 6 5 4 X 6 5 4 X 654 3 2 1 O-3 2 1 o 3 2 1 o 3 2 1 ,:
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From page 157... ...
23. 21/22 We believe that a number of people maintain an index or record of scientific or technical data Do you keep a personal index or record of this kind, or a list of literature references containing valuable data?
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From page 158... ...
YES Answer X If you use "Reports List A" have you any criticisms X to offer? NO tIf not used, ring 27, 28 with "X" and continue with 29.
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From page 159... ...
38. Would you say about what percentage of your research information is obtained from British as against foreign periodicals?
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From page 160... ...
Instructions: Please record on this sheet (or a continuation sheet bearing the same dates) each time you use a published abstract journal, entering against its title a stroke / when you are using it to locate or identify past literature, or a " X " when you are using it to keep abreast of recent developments.
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From page 161... ...
HOGG and SMITH Information and Literature Use ...........................................
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From page 162... ...
~62 Determining Literature and Reference Needs of Scientists AREA ~ b SERIAL NO. Record of REPORTS Etc.
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