Navigating Theological Resources

Objectives This study assesses the navigability of a selection of American Theological Library Association and Association of Christian Librarians library websites and measures the extent to which these libraries employ responsive design. Methods This study uses quantitative content analys...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Grace Andrews
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Theological Library Association 2020-04-01
Series:Theological Librarianship
Subjects:
Online Access:https://theolib.atla.com/theolib/article/view/550
Description
Summary:Objectives This study assesses the navigability of a selection of American Theological Library Association and Association of Christian Librarians library websites and measures the extent to which these libraries employ responsive design. Methods This study uses quantitative content analysis.  Results The most frequent navigational path for key content was in the main text of the landing page, either through a direct hyperlink or simply as text displayed on the website. Two-thirds (66%) of the websites were found to be fully functional in their mobile versions, with only 5 (6%) partially functional and 19 (23%) not functional at all. Conclusions Theological libraries should consider their mission and resources when organizing their websites. Additionally, they should strive to include basic customer service and research assistance through their website. Putting key content in the main text of the homepage will make it more available to potential users. Libraries will do well to continue efforts toward responsive design.
ISSN:1937-8904