Abstracts
Abstract
Accessibility in collection development policies (CDPs) and practice in Canada is understudied. Two studies focusing on academic libraries in provinces with accessibility legislation were done to investigate both policy and practice. The first study employed a content analysis of publicly available CDPs of academic libraries in Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Ontario to determine if accessibility was explicitly mentioned in them. The study aimed to explore possible legislative influence in the wording of CDPs. Since CDPs show only part of the picture as to how selectors make their acquisition decisions, in the second study, a multiple-choice and short answer survey was administered to selectors at academic libraries in these three provinces, in order to discover the factors that influence selectors in deciding if and how they use accessibility as a selection criterion. This article presents the research undertaken and sheds new light on how accessibility functions in collection development in the Canadian academic library context.
Keywords:
- academic libraries,
- accessibility,
- acquisitions,
- collection development
Résumé
L’accessibilité dans les pratiques et les politiques de développement des collections (PDC) au Canada est sous-étudiée. Deux études portant sur les bibliothèques universitaires dans des provinces dotées d’une législation sur l’accessibilité ont été menées afin d'examiner à la fois les politiques et les pratiques. La première étude, une analyse de contenu des PDC accessibles au public des bibliothèques universitaires du Manitoba, de la Nouvelle-Écosse et de l’Ontario, cherchait à déterminer si l’accessibilité était explicitement mentionnée. L’étude tentait d’explorer l’influence potentielle de la législation sur la formulation des PDC. Étant donné que les PDC ne présente qu’une image partielle de la manière dont les personnes responsables pour la sélection prennent leurs décisions quant à l’acquisition, une deuxième étude, un questionnaire à choix multiples et à réponses courtes, a été menée auprès de ces personnes responsables au sein des bibliothèques universitaires des trois provinces ciblées afin de découvrir les facteurs qui les influencent lorsqu’elles décident si et comment elles utilisent l’accessibilité comme critère de sélection. Cet article présente cette recherche et met en lumière le rôle de l’accessibilité dans le développement des collections dans le contexte des bibliothèques universitaires canadiennes.
Mots-clés :
- bibliothèques universitaires,
- accessibilité,
- acquisitions,
- développement des collections
Appendices
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