Collection Growth in Postwar America: A Critique of Policy and Practice

The accumulation of large collections by members of the American Association of Research Libraries is seen by them as fundamental to their research support role. This article outlines collection development and management practice and policy of the association members between 1945 and 1979. The study is a critical history where narrative is accompanied by analysis and context. Collecting policy and practice is reviewed with a focus on the strategies adopted to cope with the consequences of growth which led to pressure on capacity. A critique of collections policy reviews three significant causal factors: institutional competition, the conception of the role of librarian as a “bookman” as opposed to manager, and the belief that collections would be of longer-term value to the university in that they transcended immediate needs. The advent of usage studies is examined, and the implications of the study for current policy concerning printed collections are discussed.