Applegate, Rachel2010-07-272010-07-272008Applegate, Rachel. "Whose decline? Which academic libraries are 'deserted' in terms of reference transactions?" Reference and User Services Quarterly 48, no.2 (2008): 176-188.Applegate, Rachel. "Whose decline? Which academic libraries are 'deserted' in terms of reference transactions?" July 27, 2010. Available from IUPUI ScholarWorks. http://hdl.handle.net/1805/2214.1094-9054https://hdl.handle.net/1805/2214Permission for inclusion in IUPUI ScholarWorks granted by Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), June 2010. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. [BREAK] Publisher: American Library Association [BREAK] This item submitted to IUPUI ScholarWorks as part of the OASIS Project.This study examines reference transaction quantities reported through the Academic Library Survey of the National Center for Educational Statistics to explore whether, and the extent to which, academic libraries are seeing a decline: the beginnings of a "deserted library." Data from 2002 and 2004 shows a decline in reference transactions per week on a per-library basis and on a per-student basis, but this decline differs by the type of institution (Carnegie Class). Librarians at master's institutions have actually seen an increase in the numbers of questions per librarian. ARL institutions' patterns differ from those of other universities, which calls into question using ARL experiences as indicative of the wider academic universe.en-USReference TransactionsAcademic LibrariesAcademic libraries -- StatisticsAcademic libraries -- Reference servicesAcademic libraries -- EmployeesAcademic libraries -- AdministrationArticle