Abstract

In 2020–2021, the University of Connecticut (UConn) Library ceased more than 90% of its print journal subscriptions for the general collections. This decision was the outcome of a data-based review and cost-benefit analysis. Staff considered factors such as online availability, number of WorldCat holdings, scan-on-demand and interlibrary lending and borrowing activity, and hidden costs of storage and staff time for processing. Recorded usage proved all but nonexistent, with an annual average use of one per title. Additionally, print journals were inaccessible to patrons because of the closure of library stacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. We did not conduct an extensive qualitative review. UConn Library’s decisions broke new ground among U.S. research universities, which have winnowed their print subscriptions over the decades but rarely made a decisive break from print. This article will discuss the project, process, decisions, and data and will share UConn’s assessment strategies and criteria for reinstituting subscriptions. At stake was the principle that libraries must use their scarce resources effectively—at any scale.

摘要

在 2020-2021 年，康涅狄格大学 (UConn) 图书馆停止了 90% 以上的普通馆藏印刷期刊订阅。这一决定是基于数据的审查和成本效益分析的结果。工作人员考虑了诸如在线可用性、WorldCat 馆藏数量、按需扫描和馆际互借活动以及隐藏的存储成本和工作人员处理时间等因素。记录的使用情况几乎不存在，每个标题每年平均使用一次。此外，由于在 COVID-19 大流行期间图书馆馆藏关闭，顾客无法访问印刷期刊。我们没有进行广泛的定性审查。UConn 图书馆的决定在美国研究型大学中开辟了新天地，几十年来，他们一直在筛选印刷版订阅，但很少从印刷版中获得决定性的突破。本文将讨论项目、流程、决策和数据，并将分享 UConn 的评估策略和重新订阅的标准。图书馆必须有效利用其稀缺资源的原则受到威胁——无论规模如何。