Relative efficiency of university libraries in Croatia

The main objective of this paper is to assess the efficiency of university libraries in Croatia in the period from 2018 to 2022, taking into account both the years before and after COVID-19. For this purpose, the study employed the well-known non-parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method, specifically the window DEA (WDEA), to analyse a sample of 8 university libraries in Croatia. The study considered three inputs (Number of books held, Number of library staff, and Actual allocated budget) and three outputs (Circulation, Number of books added, and Number of registered members). The findings indicate that none of the university libraries in Croatia demonstrated relative efficiency during the observed period. These results provide valuable insights for university management and policy makers. This study is characterised by its original approach, as it is the first known attempt to use the DEA method to assess the performance of academic libraries in Croatia and the South East European region.