| National public library statistical systems in both the US and China have provided statistical information on library activity for over a half century, yet inadequate study of the usefulness of the statistics has limited understanding of the effects of the systems I products.; Through a specially designed program evaluation and comparison with a consumer-driven approach, this study examined the use and usefulness of the public library statistics collected and reported by both governmental and professional agencies in the US and China. Research questions that guided the study included (1) in what ways and to what extent do public library administrators find the national public library statistics useful? (2) how do the primary characteristics of the national public library statistical programs relate to their statistics usefulness? and (3) what can each country learn from the other to strengthen their statistical systems? Four national statistical programs were examined. 63 US and 45 Chinese public library directors responded to the survey; their statistical use behavior and perceptions concerning characteristics of the statistical systems and the systems' products were measured through 5 sets of variables on uses and 13 dimensional criteria on perceptions. Observations and results were analyzed with t-tests, factor analysis and Pearson Correlation. A cross-country comparison revealed strengths and weaknesses of the four national programs.; For the first time, the patterns of use, the ways of use, and extent of use of the statistics were investigated, library directors' perceptions concerning the characteristics of the systems and the systems' statistics were described, relationships between the perceptions and use of the statistics were explored, and finally, the usefulness of the national public library statistics was reported. As sharing use of statistical information between library professions in the US and China has been scarce, this researcher's effort can increase understanding of the accountability and utilization of statistics, suggest approaches to improving statistics effectiveness, and ultimately, benefit library management and decision-making process in both countries. |
