NCJ Number
166369
Date Published
1997
Length
10 pages
Annotation
The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) surveyed traditional users of BJS printed products to see whether other media might appeal to them more.
Abstract
The survey was mailed May 15, 1997, to 61,000 BJS users. There were 15,179 respondents, a response rate of 26 percent. A total of 13,623 (89.7 percent) said they still wanted to receive printed and bound reports by mail; 5.5 percent said they did not. Asked what factors influenced their need for printed copies, 54.1 percent said the subject; 36.4 percent, how often they used it; and 23.6 percent, length. Of those who said length was a factor, 13.6 percent of them wanted paper copies of reports that have 25 or more pages. Of those responding, 52.3 percent said they had used the Internet to access BJS data; 43.2 percent reported they had not. Of those who had been online, 24.2 percent had visited the BJS site in the previous month. Of those who use the Internet, 55.4 percent had ever downloaded a document onto their computer. The survey also solicited information on the file types most often downloaded. Most (96.7 percent) respondents wanted to receive notices of new BJS reports; 87.2 percent wanted notices of BJS reports, along with reports from other agencies; 78.7 percent wanted notices by U.S. mail; 18.7 percent by e-mail; and 9.6 percent by fax; 73.6 percent said they would not want to receive BJS data and reports on a CD-ROM; 14.2 percent said they would; and 12.2 percent did not answer. Survey responses are broken down by respondent occupation, number, and percentages. The survey questionnaire is provided.
Date Published: January 1, 1997