The Information Needs and Seeking Behaviour of The Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University Faculty Members

S Thanuskodi

doi:10.5923/j.ijis.20120204.03

Abstract

Adequate knowledge about the informat ion needs and seeking behaviour of users is vital for developing library collections, services and facilities to meet their info rmation needs effectively. The purpose of this study is to identify the informat ion channels used by the Tamil Nadu Dr. A mbedkar Law University faculty members, information sources preferred by them, methods employed for getting the needed information and their library use pattern. A questionnaire was distributed to 20 Tamil Nadu Dr. A mbedkar Law Un iversity faculty members and 18 filled in questionnaires were returned, giving an overall response rate of 90 percent. It was found that respondents used various sources for acquiring the needed information. Books were ran ked as the most important source for teaching and research purposes, followed by law reports and statutes. Respondents preferred to first consult their personal collection before resorting to other informat ion providing sources and agencies. The Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) and CD-ROM were the most frequently used IT-based sources and facilit ies. E-mail was the most popular among the Internet-based services and applications. On the whole, respondents per- ceived Tamil Nadu Dr. A mbedkar Law University library co llect ions, services and facilit ies as adequate to meet their in- formation needs effectively.

Highlights

Information is considered as an important resource that contributes towards the development of a nation
In order to acco mp lish th is tas k effect ively, lib raries must hav e a Information seeking behaviour is a broad term, wh ich involves a set of actions that an individual takes to express informat ion needs, seek information, evaluate and select informat ion, and use this informat ion to satisfy his/her informat ion needs
Desirable to understand the purpose for which informat ion is required, the environment in which the user operates, users’ skills in identifying the needed informat ion, channels and sources preferred for acquiring information, and barriers to informat ion

Summary

Introduction

Information is considered as an important resource that contributes towards the development of a nation. The role of libraries becomes vital in meeting the informat ion needs of individuals in the society. Various factors may determine the informat ion seeking behaviour of an ind ividual or a group of indiv iduals. It is, desirable to understand the purpose for which informat ion is required, the environment in which the user operates, users’ skills in identifying the needed informat ion, channels and sources preferred for acquiring information, and barriers to informat ion. Earlier studies primarily focused on scientists and technologists to assist in build ing in formation resources and systems to effectively meet their informat ion needs (Reneker, 1992). Hart (1993) felt that earlier studies focused on scientists and engineers because of more interest in these libraries at that

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