Expanding Library Support of Faculty Research: Exploring Readiness

The changing research and information environment requires a reexamination of library support for research. This study considers research-related attitudes and practices to identify elements indicating readiness or resistance to expanding the library’s role in research support. A survey of faculty conducted at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) finds that although a high percentage of faculty rate the library as important or very important to research productivity, perceived importance of specific support functions drops markedly, except for functions related to buying or providing access to resources.