ABSTRACT
This study was
carried out to ascertain awareness, use and users’ satisfaction of library
electronic resources by undergraduates of National Open University of Nigeria,
Lagos Study Centre. The objectives of the study include to find out the extent
of users’ awareness of library electronic resources, determine the skills
needed to use library electronic resources, determine the level of use of library
electronic resources, find out the level of users satisfaction with library
electronic resources, find out the level of awareness on use of library
e-resources, find out the influence of use on users satisfaction of library e-resources,
find out joint influence of awareness and use of library electronic resources on users satisfaction, and to identify the challenges facing users
in the use of library e-resources in NOUN.
The
study adopted a survey design. A structured questionnaire, titled “Awareness,
use and users’ satisfaction of library electronic resources by undergraduates
of National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos Study Centre” (AUUSLER) was used
to gather data among undergraduates in NOUN, Lagos Study Centre. Multistage sampling technique was used since
the population was large. The instrument was validated through a pre-test among
50 undergraduates of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), McCarthy Study
Centre, Lagos State to determine the Cronbach’s alpha value. The result
indicated 0.88 for awareness of library e-resources, 0.92 for use of library
e-resources and 0.74 for users’ satisfaction. Out of 966 copies of the
questionnaires distributed, 722 copies representing 75.2% were retrieved and
found valid for analysis, using frequency count, mean, standard deviation and
linear regression analysis.
The findings revealed that awareness, use of library e-resources has
significantly influence on users’ satisfaction (p<0.005). Thefindings
revealed that 66 percent of the respondents were very aware, aware and somewhat
aware of the e-resources while 34 percent were either not aware or not sure of
the e- resources. Table 4.3 revealed that 64 percent of the respondents were
highly and moderately skilled with the e-resources while 36% had low skills. This indicates that
undergraduates of NOUN, Lagos study Centre have high level of computer and
internet skills but with low level of OPAC, Navigation and queries skills. The result in Table 4.4 shows that 64 percent of the
respondents Utilized electronic resources while 36 percent of the respondents
do not utilize the library electronic resources. The result in Table 4.5
revealed that 81 percent of the respondents were satisfied with the e-resources
while about 19 percent were not satisfied. Finally, the result in Table 4.6
shows that average of 54 percent of the respondents either Strongly Agree or
Agree with the Eleven (11) items identified while about 46 percent of the
respondents either disagree or strongly disagree with the eleven (11) items on
Table 4.6.
The study
concluded that large percentages of Undergraduates are not aware of online
Databases of the library, those that are aware don’t have the required skills
or expertise to use the resources. This has affected their level of usage.
Keywords: Awareness
of e-resources, Academic Libraries, Skills to use of library e-resources, Use of library e-resources, Users’ satisfaction of library e-resources.
Word Count = 490
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Content page
Title Page i
Certification ii
Dedication iii Acknowledgements iv
Abstract v
Table of Contents vi
List of Tables ix
List of Figures x
CHAPTER
ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem 8
1.3 Objective of the Study 8
1.4 Research Questions 9
1.5 Hypotheses 9
1.6 Scope of the Study 9
1.7 Significance of the Study 9
1.8 Operational Definition of Terms 10
Content page
CHAPTER
TWO: REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2.0 Introduction 12
2.1 National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Library 13
2.2 The Concept of Electronic Resources 14
2.3 Library Electronic Resources in NOUN 15
2.4 Awareness of Library Electronic Resources in NOUN 16
2.5 Use of Library Electronic Resources in NOUN 18
2.5.1 Purpose of Use 20
2.6 Skills Needed to Use Library Electronic Resources in NOUN 23
2.6.1 Skill Training 27
2.7 Use of Library e-resources and Users’ Satisfaction in NOUN 28
2.8 Challenges of Using Library e-resources in NOUN 29
2.9 Theoretical Framework 33
2.9.1 Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) 33
2.9.2 Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) 34
2.9.3 Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory (EDT) 37
2.10 Conceptual Model 39
2.11 Appraisal of the Literature Reviewed 40
CHAPTER
THREE: METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction 42
3.1 Research Design 42
3.2 Population 43
Content page
3.3 Sample size and sampling Technique 44
3.4 Research Instrument 45
3.5 Validity and Reliability of Instrument 45
3.6 Data Collection Procedure 46
3.7 Method of Data Analysis 46
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS
4.0 Introduction 47
4.1 Presentation of Demographic Information of Respondents 47
4.2 Data Presentation based on Research Questions 50
4.3 Testing of Hypotheses 58
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Summary 61
5.2 Conclusion 62
5.3 Recommendations 63
5.4 Contributions to Knowledge 63
5.5 Suggestions for Further Study 64
Reference 65
Appendices 75
LIST OF TABLES
Table page
3.2 Population 43
3.3 Sample size for the Study 44
4.1 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents 48
4.2Level
of Users’ awareness of Library Electronic Resources in the University. 50
4.3 Level of Use of Library e-resources in NOUN 52
4.5 Levels of Users’ Satisfaction with Library e-resources in NOUN 54
4.6 Challenges to the Use of Library e-resources in NOUN 56
4.7 The result of significant influence of awareness of Library e-resources on Users’ Satisfaction in NOUN 58
4.8 The result of the significant influence of Use of Library e-resources on Users’ Satisfaction in NOUN 59
4.9 The result of the significant joint influence of awareness and Use of Library e-resources on Users’ satisfaction in NOUN 60
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure page
2.9.1 Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) 34
2.9.2 Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) 35
2.9.3 Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory (EDT) 37
2.10 Conceptual Model 39
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- Background
to the Study
Academic libraries are institutions that
are established to take care of the information need of students, lecturers,
researchers and other community of scholars. The reason for setting up the
library is to provide information service to its users. Academiclibraries are found in post-secondary institutions such as
universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. Academic library has a critical
role to play in supporting the core mission of these higher institutions of
learning which are teaching, learning and research. They
are key components of any institution in that they support institutional
curricular by meeting information needs of students, staff and other
researchers who might be resident outside the academic community. System of
library is changing as libraries, especially academic libraries are now embracing
electronic library system thereby encouraging the use of electronic library
resources
Electronic
resources can be defined as the electronic representation of information which
can be accessed via electronic system and computer network (Johnson, Evensen,
Gelfand, Lammers, Sipe&Zilper, 2012). They further stated that electronic
resources can be seen as the most recent development in information technology
and that they are available in various forms like e-books, digital libraries,
online journal magazine, e-learning tutors and online test because of the
effective presentation with multimedia tools, these e-resources have become the
source of information. Electronic resources deliver the collection of
information as full text (aggregated) databases, e-journals, image collections,
multimedia in the form of CD, tape, internet, web technology, etc.
E-resources
include e-journals, e-discussions, e-news, data archives, e-mail online
chatting, just to mention but a few. Electronic resource are a wide range of
products going from electronic periodicals to CD-ROMs, from mailing list to
databases, all of them having a common feature of being used and sometime
modified by a computer (Thanuskodi, 2012). Electronic resources are becoming
more and more important for the academic community (Egberongbe, 2011).
Therefore, users’ satisfaction with these information resources is of paramount
importance to library development in the 21st Century. Users’ satisfaction of
library e-resources is based on the level of how the library meet their
information needs, the relevant of the materials, availability of resources,
accessibility of the resources and how they can use the various library
resources efficiently and effectively.
User satisfaction is the state that results after a library user has either favorably or
positively experienced a service or product. It can be quantified and basically
represents the degree to which a library has met a user’s needs and expectations.
Satisfaction is based on the concept of disconfirmation, which represents the
gap that exists between customer expectations and service performance. This
gap, in turn, can develop from a user’s perception of the relationship between
expectations and performance. The concept of satisfaction is similar to an
escalator. As user’s get better treatment which, in turn, leads to a higher
level of satisfaction, they raise their level of expectations, demand better
treatment, and motivate libraries to strive even harder. While this situation
presents library staff with a challenge, it can also create a win/win situation
in which libraries gain valuable support from their constituents. While
satisfaction is a concept that is based upon past performance, it also involves
a forward looking component. Libraries can use instruments that define what
their users want or record user experiences and levels of satisfaction.
Expectations are the standards against which a vendor’s or
service provider’s performance should be judged. Expectations are assumptions
about the likelihood of something occurring. Alternatively, they reflect
anticipated performance. Users’ tend to hold expectations that can be
considered quite basic. Of greatest importance to users’ is a basic solid performance
and that promises are kept. Users’ desire a quality
service or product provided in a friendly and courteous manner. Users’ service
expectations fall into two categories: (1) service as an end result or outcome
that involves reliability or the ability to perform a promised service both
dependably and accurately; and (2) service process, which consists of the
following dimensions-assurance (the ability of staff to convey a high degree of
trust and confidence based on knowledge and courtesy), responsiveness (a
demonstrated willingness to help users and provide prompt service), empathy
(providing caring, individualized attention to users’), and tangibles (the
appearance of physical facilities, the amount of equipment and staff, and the
degree of communication that exists between the service provider and its
users). Each dimension of expectations is likely to involve two service levels.
The first is the desired service level or what the user hopes to receive-a
blend of what can and should be. The second represents the adequate service
level-that level of service a user finds acceptable.
It is relatively easy to state that
users define service quality as the discrepancy that exists between their
expectations or desires and their perceptions of experiences. Edwards and
Browne (1995) report that library staff tends to emphasize empathy, tangibles,
and users/staff relationships. Yet, academic library users tend to attach
greater importance to reliability and responsiveness. Library users hold
expectations for concrete indicators such as the rapid delivery of interlibrary
loan materials or the consistently good working order of online equipment. The
latter assumes even greater importance for remote users. Library with a good
understanding of needs and expectations and their relation to customer
satisfaction will experience greater success in satisfying their users.
However, the goal should not be simply to meet expectations but rather to
exceed them by surprising and delighting users. To do so, libraries must
attempt to both manage and redefine users’ behavior and expectations. For some,
this has the negative connotation of creating needs for a service or product
developed more for the sake of the vendor or service provider than for the
user. What is actually involved is a market-driven focus manifested in
creativity or innovation that develops a new product or service to address
previously unmet or unrecognized needs. For this undertaking to succeed,
library must possess a superior understanding of users’ linked with the
library’s capabilities. We must understand our users’ behavioral needs, their
overall attitudes, the environment in which they use services and products, and
their perceptions of how services and resources compare to those of other
service providers.
Another essential component
is a major educational effort on the part of the library. They need to be
honest with library users in educating/informing them as to what libraries can
or cannot provide and what the costs, both monetary and other, will be to
provide the desired services. This element is especially critical in distance
learning environments where remote users may possess less loyalty to the “home”
institution and may be willing to shop around for the needed resources provided
in the most user-friendly manner. A key fact to remember, and it is especially
applicable with regard to remote users, is that library users’ are not only
service recipients but they are also service providers. In virtually every
service delivery transaction, the user brings two types of information
and/or effort (Kelley, Skinner, & Donnelly, 1992). The first is user
technical quality, which involves any labor performed by the user or
information that she/he provides. The user also brings functional quality or
the interpersonal aspects of user behavior (such as courtesy, friendliness, and
respect) during the service transaction. While the first type is likely to
assume greater importance in a remote access environment, the second type has
relevance for activities such as telephone conversations, e-mail
communications, and telefax transmissions.
Library users actually assume the role of partial employees of the
library. Since users’ dissatisfaction is often due to the user’s behavior,
users need to understand their role in the service delivery. Satisfaction of
users of library electronic resources could be determined by the level of
awareness of those e-resources, ability to use them efficiently and
effectively.
Awareness
is knowledge about something that exists or understanding of a situation or
subject at the present time based on information or experience
(Ani&Ahiauzu, 2008). It can also be seen as knowledge or perception of a
situation, fact, consciousness, recognition, realization, grasp
andacknowledgement concern about and well-informed interest or familiarity in a
particular situation or development. A study on ICTs by health science students
at the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan by Ajuwon (2003) revealed that
students studied could not use a computer, and that the use of the database was
poor, due to lack of awareness, lack of access to computers, insufficient
training and high cost of provision of electronic resources subscription.
Awareness and use of electronic resources is very important so as to keep
undergraduates alert of the available media through which they can access
needed information. It is also imperative to understand the purpose of using
electronic resources by undergraduates. Awareness of the changes in technology
in recent years has dramatically altered how information is accessed, stored
and disseminated (Tsakomas&Papatheodorou, 2006). Whereas information provision
and usage in academic libraries was previously based upon the collection of
physical library materials, it is now increasingly the case that academic
libraries are moving into the virtual arena.
Undergraduates
in their reaction to such stimuli ought to be aware of the availability of such
resources to aid them in their academic pursuit. With advances in technology
and e-publishing, online test full text databases, Emerald, Science Direct,
Academic Search Premier, Ebscohost, TEEEL, Oare Sciences, Hinari, Virtual
Library (NUC), online public access catalogue (OPAC), CD-ROMs (Compact
Disc-Read Only Memory), e-books collections, e-journals covering a variety of
subjects, and major bibliographic databases like AGORA and MEDLARS etc., access
to information on a local, regional, national and international basis has
overcome the traditional barriers of time, easy of accessibility and space
(Prangya&Rabindra, 2013; Sharma, 2009). Since electronic resources are
systems in which information are stored electronically and made accessible
through electronic systems and computer networks. Therefore, awareness is
paramount if undergraduates’
are
to harness these resources. Awareness of electronic resources has changed what
users actually read and use. They now tend to use only what is easily
accessible. Therefore, they visit the library a lot less, and, as such,
unexpected discovery is reduced. Prangya and Rabindra (2013) opined that
awareness is core to usage of electronic resources. Where materials are in closed access, users’ ease of
access to such e-resources is by far reduced. But where
they are in open access (not subscription-based), undergraduatesfind them, and
make do with them for whatever reasons they need them for.
The usage of electronic resources in recent
years has yielded positive results in the area of teaching and research and
that through the use of electronic resources, researchers, academic and
students now have access to global information resources, particularly the
Internet for their scholarly intercourse (Egberongbe, 2011; Ellis &Oldman,
2005). Gakibayo (2001) carried out a study on Internet usage by students and
staff at Mbarara University of Science and Technology and the result of the
study indicated low usage of electronic resources by students and staff of the
university.
Undergraduate
students’ need skills to make adequate use of electronic
resources and that
if these skills are not there to enable them navigate the Internet their
academic and research needs will suffer a setback. Watt and Ibegbulam (2005)
stressed that the use of electronic resources largely depends on the user’s
ability to navigate the maze of e-resources available via technology-based
terminals. Zaki (1991) pointed out that the poor background in the use of
library by students equally affect them at the undergraduate level. Ojo and
Akande (2005) opined that students’ level of access, usage and awareness of
electronic resources at the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, Nigeria
is not high and that the major problem however identified in their study is
lack of information retrieval skills for exploiting electronic resources, thus
making the level of usage of resources by medical students very low. There is need to equip end-users
with skills such as information literacy skills, information retrieval skills,
computer skills among others as a strategy to promote e-resource usage
(Adekinya&Adeyemo, 2006). Although, the value and use of e-resources have
increased with time since users, especially undergraduates in higher institutions
generally depends on skills of each user to locate discrete knowledge elements.
According
to the Final Report of the American Library Association Presidential Committee
on Information Literacy (2001), the information literate user’s skill is being
able to recognize when information is needed and have the
ability to locate, evaluate, and use information resourceseffectively. Tyagi
(2011) the ability to use e-resources efficiently depends on basic computer
skills,knowledge of what is available and how to use it, and ability to define
a research problem. Howundergraduates attain the above skills and knowledge
depends on many factors, such as theirdisciplines, academic status and ranks,
age and access. To further buttress this, Prangya and Rabindra (2013)concluded
that lack of training; poor infrastructure and high cost of accessing some e-resources
are theobstacles to proper and full utilization of electronic resources.
The
use of electronic resources by undergraduates in Nigerian universities comes
with a couple of challenges like the nation’s poor telecommunications
infrastructure which has been a subject of debate to researchers and higher
institutions (Adomi, 2005). In the face of poor telecommunications
infrastructure, poor user skills in navigating e-resources, high cost of
Internet subscription and restricted access to e-resources are also major
challenges plaguing the use of electronic resources by undergraduates’in
Nigerian universities.
It is pertinent to note that when undergraduates’ are aware
of e-
resources they make adequate use of them for academic and research purposes,
they may derive satisfaction when the e-resources are timely, accurate, make
use of them efficiently and effectively . It is also important that for the
students to make use of the resources, they ought to be skilled in Information
and Communication Technologies (ICTs) applications in other to gain independent
use of various electronic resources around the globe. Be that as it may, it has
been observed that undergraduates in Nigerian universities are confronted with
various challenges relating to inadequate telecommunicationsinfrastructure, high
cost of subscription, poor user skills, amongst others in the use of
e-resources. Consequently, this study explores awareness, use, and users’
satisfaction with library electronic resources among undergraduates’ of National Open
University of Nigeria (NOUN), Lagos Study Centre.
NOUN library is a learning-friendly,
user-oriented library that plays a vital role to ensure students’ success and
encourages life-long learning. The library is a place where the highest quality
learning tools in information gathering and usage are provided, thereby
enhancing its student’s academic and learning experiences. Since it conception,
NOUN University library has committed itself to its primary goal of optimizing
existing library services and implementing new, user-oriented ones. The library
staff work with the library software to optimize the e-library, particularly in
the field of cataloguing and classification, circulation, acquisition as well
as the development of digital collections. The National Open University Library
has a vast collection of resources of about 40 thousand books and journals at
the University’s headquarters. It’s permanently growing choice of
scientifically relevant electronic full texts is not only in the main library
of NOUN University which was founded in 2007, but also in the numerous study centres
of the University. About 85% of the library’s collection is for open access and
arranged with the library of Congress Classification Scheme.
Most significantly, The NOUN library
subscribes to several databases with the availability of electronic books,
journals and periodicals. The NOUN library provides access details to the
subscribed databases. Some examples of these electronic resources are: Ebrary,
Questia, Agora, ScienceDirect and Ebsco. Also the library currently uploads
into its database, all CDs that come with books acquired by the library. Such
books are thus accessible electronically or in print format. Course materials
prepared by the University for its students can be viewed electronically and
downloaded if so desired. Print serials (Magazines and newspapers) purchased by
the library and indexed are abstracted daily to provide online access for the
library Users.
- Statement
of the Problem
Before now,
information resources were mainly in paper formats. At present, Information is
presented in electronic format and the need to make them readily available and
accessible to all became an issue and in a bid to overcome this brought about
the need for an alternative media for holding and propagating information
resources. Several efforts were made until the emergence of Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) in the early 1990s, which brought about the
change to cope with the rising volume of information. With the Internet and
other electronic resources media such as CD ROM, databases and OPAC. Information can be stored in one place and be
made simultaneously available to all for usage. It is worthy of
note that, electronic resources are of great importance to the academic and
research needs of undergraduates, since they are available in various formats
in libraries.
However, observations as shown that undergraduates especially those of National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos Study Centre seem not to be utilizing these e-resources available to them, could it be that they are not aware of these electronic resources and if they are aware why is it that usage is hindered, if usage is not hindered then could it be that users’ are not satisfied with the e-resources in the library. Therefore, the crux of this
