Journal titles available only in print were compared with journal titles available online and in print. Print journal usage from 1995-1998 was compared to print journal use in 1999, when online journals were first introduced. Characteristics such as computer literacy, regular use of online databases, and electronic resource awareness all influence the use of online journals. Remote access to databases and online journals from the desktop of home and office computers decreases the need to enter the library for literature searches or journal articles. The introduction of online journals has had a negative impact on the use of the in-house print journal collection, regardless of whether the journal is available online or only in print.
Users appear to be compromising convenience for quality when selecting journal articles.
Shifting patron use patterns impacts collection development, the promotion of full text and print collections, and library instruction. This paper will report on efforts to enhance print and electronic resources for a graduate-level social work program and increase the visibility of our electronic resources. A large academic health sciences library, which is part of a state university system, serving six professional schools on an urban campus that is geographically distant from the other state university libraries, some of which have collections supporting undergraduate work in social work. We lack the undergraduate resources that would be available on a main campus or in a library devoted to social work. Resource sharing is a necessity for all disciplines, although the issue of access is highlighted in derivative fields such as social work.