Mean Current Serials Subscriptions, by Quartile, 1990-2002

Abstract

Serials subscribed to by public libraries increased during the period for each group and the bigger the group, the more the subscriptions. However, note that an analysis of subcriptions per 1,000 people served shows an inverse relationship: the smaller the library, the more subscriptions per population served.

Chart

This chart of the mean number of current serials subscriptions for each of four quartiles by the population of the legal service area with a fifth group that is also a part of the fourth quartile. On this chart, the means by year show the libraries in the groups subscribe to more publications as the population served increases.

The mean value for each of the groups is represented by a different colored line as indicated in the legend. The smallest libraries, those in the first quartile, have the fewest number of subscriptions while the largest libraries, those in the fourth quartile and the 95th percentile libraries have more. The numver of subcriptions rises with the size of the library.

Data

The chart summarizes these values:

Note: the value for the Fort Stockton Public Library, Fort Stockton, Texas (newkey = TX0049) for SUBSCRIP was 110,694 in 1990; in 1991, 245; and in 1992, 250. For this analysis, the 1990 value was changed to missing. If this anomalous number were left in, the number of subscriptions for the Third Quartile in 1990 would have been 167.

Conclusions

The mean number of subscriptions for the libraries in each group rose for the period. The bigger libraries added more subscriptions but the percentage differences in the increase were less pronounced.

The NCES 1990 E.D. Tabs reports a total number of subscriptions of 1,747,938 (N=8,704 of 8,978, or 97%, of libraries reporting). This is 7.07 subscriptions per 1,000 population. There is a table with eleven groups broken out by size population served and there is a rough pattern of the bigger libraries having more subscriptions but fewer per capita. I say "rough" because the pattern is not absolutely consistent across all 11.¹ In 2001, the number of subscriptions at all (N=9,129) was estimated at 1,960,000. This year, imputations for nonresponse (95.2% responded) were used so this is a national estimate. There were 7.2 subscriptions per 1,000 of population and the same rough pattern of more subscriptions at the larger libraries but fewer per 1,000 of population served.² The 2002 E.D. Tabs has not been published.

Notes

¹ U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Public Libraries in the US.: 1990. E.D. Tabs, June 1992. p. 67. There is a disclaimer that this estimate may be low because of nonresponses. This year, there are no imputations.

² U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Public Libraries in the United States: Fiscal Year 2001. E.D. Tabs, June 2003. p. 41.

November 19, 2004