Survey research indicates that individuals frequently remember recent events clearly and accurately, but are not able to generalize. By asking a large sample, random error corrects for reports of services that are normally used, but were not used during the last visit. Responses are summarized in table 2. Again, differences in usage patterns are reported along with ranks for the two locations and time period. Changes in percentage and rank can be analyzed together to gain an overall picture of change.
Respondents indicate that they are using more services when they visit the library.
In 1983, students at Penn State Harrisburg used about seven services each time they visited the library. In 1996, New Mexico State University respondents indicated that they used almost nine services per visit. In the future, these numbers may change or be counted differently as users take advantage of electronic services to use scholarly information without ever coming through the library's door. While the total number of services used has grown, usage of some services has declined for different reasons. Books and reserve readings are being used less frequently.