Researcher Consultation/Finding Aid Survey

OMB Control No. 3095-0070

Expiration date: 10-31-2014

Revised March 20, 2012 Survey

Research Consultation/Finding Aid Survey

Please check the appropriate response in each item based on your most recent research experience at this National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) facility.

Researcher’s Background:

1. Which category best describes you.

1 – First Time Researcher – Never Visited or Used NARA before.

2 – Occasional Researcher – Visited or Used NARA less than 5 times.

3 – Frequent Researcher – Visited or Used NARA more than 5 times.

Finding Aids Effectiveness: [Finding aids are any materials – textual or electronic – that were prepared to assist you in locating records relating to your research. Examples are:

• box lists;

• Archival Research Catalog (ARC);

• reference information papers;

• NARA’s website;

• published inventories; and

• Holdings Management System print-outs, etc.]

2. I used the NARA website to try to locate textual records relating to my research.

Yes

No

3. If yes, please rate the descriptions of textual information that you located on the NARA website relating to your research.

1 – Very Helpful

2 – Helpful

3 – Average

4 – Unhelpful

5 – Very Unhelpful

4. Did you locate any textual records relating to your research using the online Archive Research Catalog (ARC) prior to your visit to this NARA facility?

Yes

No

5. If yes, please rate the accuracy and completeness of the descriptions for textual information that you located in ARC relating to your research.

1 – Very Helpful

2 – Helpful

3 – Average

4 – Unhelpful

5 – Very Unhelpful

6. Did you locate any textual records relating to your research using the paper-based finding aids at this NARA facility?

Yes

No

7. If yes, please rate the accuracy and completeness of the paper-based finding aids that you used at this NARA facility relating to your research.

1 – Very Helpful

2 – Helpful

3 – Average

4 – Unhelpful

5 – Very Unhelpful

8. What finding aids did you find most effective in assisting you with your research?

1 – Electronic Finding Aids – NARA Website, ARC, etc.

2 – Paper-based Finding Aids

3 – Neither. I couldn’t find anything relating to my research in any of the finding aids available.

Availability of NARA’s Electronic Finding Aids:

9. Did you have access to a computer to begin your research?

Yes

No

10. If yes, where did you complete your initial online research

1 – At Home

2 – At a NARA Facility

11. If no, why didn’t you have access to a computer for your research at this NARA facility?

1 – No public computers were ever available for me to use.

2 – Staff never mentioned that computers were available for me to use.

3 – Staff mentioned using a public computer to access the information, but there was no computer available for me to use.

4 – Staff informed me that the information wasn’t available electronically.

12. If you completed your initial online research at this NARA facility, please rate how accessible equipment was to you.

1 – Very Helpful

2 – Helpful

3 – Average

4 – Unhelpful

5 – Very Unhelpful

NARA Staff Effectiveness:

13. Did NARA staff assist you with your research?

Yes

No

Didn’t need their assistance

14. If yes, please rate their effectiveness in assisting you with your research.

1 – Very Helpful

2 – Helpful

3 – Average

4 – Unhelpful

5 – Very Unhelpful

15. If no,

1 – I didn’t need assistance from the research consultation staff. I already knew what I wanted to request for my research topic.

2 – The research consultation staff did not ask to assist me, and I had to figure out how to locate the records (or not) by myself.

3 – The research consultation staff did offer to assist me, but they couldn’t assist me with my research topic.

16. Did you find NARA staff knowledgeable about the records relating to your research?

Yes

No

17. If no, did the NARA staff get you started with your research project?

Yes

No (Please explain.)

18. Please rate the overall efficiency of the research consultation process at this facility.

1 – Very Efficient

2 – Efficient

3 – Average

4 – Inefficient

5 – Very Inefficient

19. If you rated the efficiency of the research consultation process as a 1 or a 2, please explain your reply.

20. Any other comments about the research consultation process/finding aids for textual records at this NARA facility?

Paperwork Reduction Act Public Burden Statement

A Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a current valid OMB control number. The information requested on this form is being collected and used by the research room to assess satisfaction with research room services. Public burden reporting for this collection of information is estimated to be 5 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of the collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to National Archives and Records Administration (I-P), 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. DO NOT SEND COMPLETED SURVEY FORMS TO THIS ADDRESS.

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