| In a era when accountability and limited resources have combined to increase the pressures on library administrators, a systems approach to resource allocation is most desirable. In essence, the librarian is caught in the middle, caught between the demand for materials by the user population and the limited resources made available by the university administration. Though not new, the problem receives more emphasis as the demand for information increases and as fiscal conditions tighten.;The problem is not to determine the right or even the best method of resource allocation, but to identify and label areas of concern perceived as pertinent in any method of resource allocation. The study was an attempt to analyze the perceptions of the respondents concerning pertinent variables involved in resource allocation. The influence of the study might lead to new approaches or consideration of new factors in resource allocation in academic libraries.;This study was undertaken to assess the perceptions of the library administrators of the selected population regarding methods of resource allocation. The library administrators were surveyed to obtain their perceptions in response to twenty-three research statements which concerned possible variables used in methods of resource allocation. The responses to the research statements were analyzed by the use of factor and frequency analyses as provided in the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).;The results of the analyses led to the conclusion that six major areas of concern were perceived by the respondents. The respondents were concerned that the areas of research needs, course needs, student needs, program needs, collection adequacy, and collection development activities be considered in any systematic form of resource allocation.;In an attempt to address the question of accountability it is appropriate to survey, report, and analyze the responses of one segment of the library community in regard to the problem of resource allocation. Therefore, the focus of this study is on the factors which contribute to any form of systematic resource allocation, and not on the development of a universally best or right method of resource allocation. |
