Use of free online scholarly tools by Arab and non- Arab researchers in library and information science field: An exploratory study

Abstract

The current study aims to determine the extent of awareness of free online scholarly research tools among Arab compared to non-Arab scholars in the field of library and information science. This study measures rates of usage, perceived advantages and disadvantages, and the methods of discovering these tools which defined as tools that are used to help postgraduate students and academics interested in scholarly to prepare their scientific research easily and freely. The study adopted the quantitative approach in collecting data through the survey of (256) participants, including (132) Arab researchers and (124) non- Arab researchers. The results of the study indicated that there are (66) free scholarly tools used to prepare scientific research on the Internet. Despite the advantages offered by free online scholarly tools such as saving time and effort (24.48%). The awareness of these tools is still insufficient on the part of Arab researchers in libraries and information field (60.6%) in exchange for raising awareness on the part of non-Arab researchers (93.5%). So, it is necessary to the advertising of these tools adequately and teach it for Arab researchers in all fields. Further in-depth research in the future recommended to determine the functional quality and the possibility of their adoption in library and information science research. Finally, this study is not only important for researchers, but also for software developers and producers of these tools, Where they can benefit from the results of this study to find out the researchers' insights and their needs from these tools and work to meet them in the future.