Research

The association believes research is the foundation for excellence in health information practice, for new and expanded roles for health sciences librarians, and for attracting excellent people to the profession.

MLA Research Resources

JMLA
MLA's scholarly journal publishes research in the field.
Research Section
MLA's Research Section offeres guidelines for writing abstracts, mentoring in research, and more.
The Research Imperative:
The Research Policy Statement of the Medical Library Association
Research Agenda
A list of the 15 research questions top-ranked by MLA leaders and published in the JMLA in 2012. Source: Eldredge JD, Ascher MT, Holmes HN, Harris MR. The new Medical Library Association research agenda: final results from a three-phase delphi study. J Med Libr Assoc. 2012 July; 100(3): 214–218. DOI: 10.3163/1536-5050.100.3.012
Research Methods
Eldredge JD. Inventory of research methods for librarianship and informatics. J Med Libr Assoc. 2004 January; 92(1): 83–90. PMCID: PMC314107
Awards
Several of MLA's awards honor research in the field.
Grants and Scholarships
Support your next research project with a grant.

Projects and Studies

Benchmarking Network
Available to MLA members and survey participants, MLA's Benchmarking Network offers data and resources for benchmarking library services. Results of MLA's 2007/08 benchmarking survey are available free to participants or by subscription to others.
Salary and Compensation Surveys
- Hay Group/MLA 2008 Salary Survey
  Summary and ordering information for the results of MLA's 2008 salary survey.
- Hay Group/MLA 2005 Salary Survey
  Summary and ordering information for the results of MLA's 2005 salary survey.
- Other MLA Salary surveys 1983-2001
  Summary of the results of all previous MLA salary surveys

Wallace M, Mc Mullen, TD, Corcoran, K. Findings from the most recent Medical Library Association salary survey. J Med Libr Assoc 2004 Oct;92(4):465–472.
MLA/ Hay Group Study (Summary; 2000)
MLA contracted this study to find out how organizations compensate medical library professionals performing information technology oriented roles. Full report

Informationist Concept Website
Explore the informationist concept with materials from MLA's Informationist Invited Conference, including slides, papers, and videos; plus MLA's Study to Explore Information Specialist in Context (ISIC) Roles.
MLA User Surveys
MLA conducts internal surveys on the organization and various association services.
Value of Using Library and Information Services Study
Contracted study offers librarians the opportunity to explore and replicate the contributions of library and information services (LIS) in hospitals and academic health sciences centers.

For further information about MLA's research projects, contact Kate Corcoran, corcoran@mlahq.org, 312.419.9094 x12.