ABSTRACT

Ithaka S+R’s Faculty Survey 2009, the 4th iteration since 2000 of this survey of faculty members at colleges and universities across the United States, offers insights into how faculty attitudes about electronic media and technology have evolved over the last decade. In this article, the authors focus on the aspects of the survey that most directly relate to the work of research libraries, including commentary on information discovery and use, the evolving role of the library, and changing attitudes toward access and preservation of journal current issues and backfiles. The responses to this survey point to some of the more valuable services libraries offer (or could offer), as well as highlighting the many challenges facing libraries and putting an exclamation point on the widely shared view that the libraries cannot rely on what have been their traditional strengths.