College and Research Libraries the status of women within the library profession, but also, as the researchers state, to "contribute to the positive image of women in librarianship by virtue of the quality of the research.'' From the preface, where that statement appears, and contin- uing throughout the work, the reader is constantly reminded of the difficulties fac- ing women in our (numerically) female- dominated profession. This study docu- ments the "how" and "where" of gender-based differences in salary and status. It goes beyond that by anticipating the "why." Estabrook and Heim succeed admirably in fulfilling both goals set for the study. The research is comprehensive (within the stated limits of the population surveyed) and the methodology sound, but its great- est strength is that it calls into question carefully nurtured assumptions about women and work. The monograph itself is deceptively simple. It's short, barely 41 pages of text. The language is clear and concise (inter- pretation of the data doesn't require a tor- tuous interpretation of the interpretation). Heim and Estabrook clearly want the results of their research to be accessible to the· widest possible concerned audience. They do not obscure their findings by add- ing unnecessary embellishments or, as is so often the case in reports of survey re- search, by "speaking in tongues," ad- dressing only the initiated. The first two chapters introduce the study. Chapter One is a detailed literature review; it examines previous studies upon which the researchers drew and notes the areas of possible investigation that have been overlooked. The second chapter, "Methodology of the COSWL Study, 11 describes at length the design of the ques- tionnaire and introduces the population surveyed. The researchers are careful to point out that the population in question consists of members of the American Li- brary Association and is therefore pre- dominately female and predominately white. To its credit, the survey is not pre- sented as a definitive portrait of librarian- ship. The final questionnaire (included in the appendix) consisted of 37 questions cover- Recent Publications 519 ing four major areas: overall career pat- tern, current or most recent job situation, educational background and professional involvement, personal and family data. The rationale for each section of the ques- tionnaire is fully discussed allowing this chapter to be read both as a description of a completed project and as a model for fu- ture research. It was particularly gratify..: ing to note that the section on personal and family data offered, along with the standard categories ''married, divorced, single, 11 the option "part of a long-term committed relationship.'' Chapter 3, "Analysis of Major Find- ings," provides the heart of the study. Statistical tables accompany the narrative discussion of the findings. These findings, while interesting and important, serve mainly as tangible evidence of the exis- tence of a situation many have long sus- pected: significant differences in status and salary are found between women and men in the library profession. Even when the researchers controlled for personal, career, or professional variations, sex was found to be an important determinant of salary. As a member of the Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship (though not serving on COSWL during this proj- ect) and past-coordinator of the SRRT Feminist Task Force, I may appear to some as a less than impartial judge of a study of this nature. On the contrary, I believe that constant involvement in issues affecting women in librarianship has made me read more critically and accept less readily re- search on these issues. Heim and Esta- brook have completed a study that be- longs on every library director's bookshelf, and should be required read- ing in library school management courses. Apart from the information it gives us about ourselves, this study serves as model of conscientious, principled survey research. I recommend it highly for the questions it answers and the issues it raises.-Ellen Broidy, University of Califor- nia, Irvine. Communicating Public Access to Govern- ment Information: Proceedings of the Second Annual Library Government 520 College & Research Libraries Documents and Information Confer- ence. Ed. by Peter Hernon. Westport, Conn.: Meckler, 1983. 153p. $35. LC 82- 14334. ISBN 0-930466-59-4. This volume is based on papers deliv- ered at the second conference held in Arlington, Virginia on March 26 and 27, 1982. In the preface to Collection Develop- ment and Public Access of Government Docu- ments, the volume based on the first con- ference proceedings, Peter Hernon emphasized the underlying theme of a need for research in, and innovative ap- proaches to, documents librarianship and ''more critical evaluation of underlying as- sumptions." This same theme is repeated by Hernon in the preface to the second conference proceedings. The theoretical base of documents librarianship has been ignored and these annual conferences are presented in the hope of stimulating fu- ture research. The first two papers, however, follow the public access theme but are practical in nature. B~rnadine Hoduski in "Political Activism for Documents Librarians'' enu- merates concrete steps to take in influenc- ing publishers and policy makers and gives examples of past successes in in- creasing access to materials. Joseph Capo- nio, now director of National Technical In- formation Service, presents an overview of the agency, what it collects and dissemi- nates, and long range goals of the 1980s. Of particular interest is the section on non- book formats available, i.e., government patents, software, and data files. Nonprint formats are covered in the . next two papers. Kathleen Heim explores government-produced machine-readable statistical data as a component of the social science information system. The first sec- tion, detailing the scope of the social sci- ences and their information needs is long and detailed. The second section is a tighter presentation and covers Federal data file access policies and strategies for developing access. She stresses the need for librarians to facilitate access to this im- portant part of the information system. Charles Seavey gives an overview of government map publications with his- toric background and details of current map output. Bibliographic and political problems of access are highlighted. November 1984 Michael Tate presents a subject access theme with his paper on American Indian discontent with government reports. It is an interesting account of how government reports have adversely impacted the In- dian. He delineates problems connected with official definitions of who is Indian and the effect this has on the census. He also reveals problems with access to Bu- reau of Indian Affairs files that prove frus- trating to researchers. Two papers are research reports. Peter Hernon and Charles McClure present a preliminary report of a pilot study on qual- ity of reference in academic depositories. On the basis of unobtrusive testing in sev- enteen libraries, they found that correct answers were provided only 37 percent of the time. The authors argue that such a low rate of accuracy impairs access to de- pository collections and raises questions about the effectiveness of the depository system in meeting the public's informa- tion needs. The authors make several rec- ommendations for further study. John Richardson looks at the nature of research in government publications by analyzing theses and dissertations com- pleted since 1928. He too recommends further research. The eighth paper is on the struggle to pass a Freedom of Information Act in Can- ada. R. Brian Land gives an account of the many bills introduced and a comparison with the U.S. law. Each paper has references that are con- solidated in a bibliography at the end. A summary of papers is provided by Gary Purcell. The theme of access is followed to a greater or lesser degree in all the contri- butions, except for Richardson's. The topics are interesting, but diverse. The work is for documents librarians who wish to keep abreast of the .literature and for those seeking research topics in the field. It does not serve as a basic text on the topic as does Hernon's and McClure's lat- est publication, Public Access to Government Information (Ablex Publishing, 1984).- Michele Strange, Northwestern University. The Bibliographic Control of Official Pub- lications. Ed. by John E. Pemberton. New York: Pergamon, 1982. 172p. $25. LC 82-12358. ISBN 0-080-27419-6.