Acquisition Of Electronic Resources Research Articles

A Systematic Review of Library Services Provision in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective – Libraries have had to temporarily shut their doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in the provision of online and remote services. This review analyzed services offered by libraries, the technological tools used, and the challenges facing libraries during the pandemic. Methods – This study employed a systematic literature review, following the PRISMA checklist (Moher at al., 2009). The Building Blocks search strategy was employed to search for keywords of concepts in Library and Information Science Abstract (LISA), Library and Information Science Technology Abstract (LISTA), Library Science Database, Web of Science (WoS) core collections, and Google Scholar. A set of inclusion and exclusion criteria was pre-determined by the authors prior to database searching. Quality assessment of included studies was performed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (Hong et al., 2018). A tabular approach was used to provide a summary of each article allowing the synthesis of results, which led to the identification of eight broad categories of services provided by libraries in included studies. Results – The first set of searches from the 5 databases produced 3,499 results. After we removed duplicates and applied the inclusion and exclusion criteria based on titles and abstracts, 37 potentially relevant articles were identified. Further screening of the full-text led to the final inclusion of 23 articles used for the qualitative synthesis. The majority of the studies were conducted in the United States of America (n= 6, 26.1%), followed by India (n=4, 17%), and China (n=2, 8.7%). The remaining studies were carried out in United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Mexico, Romania, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe. The most common method used in selected studies was the case study (n= 11, 48%), followed by survey (n=7, 30.4%), content analysis (n=4, 17.4%), and mixed methods (n=1, 4.3%). The majority of the studies were carried out in academic libraries (74%), while the rest were based on medical, public, and special libraries. Findings show that the majority of academic libraries in the included studies are providing and expanding access to electronic resources (n=16, 69.6%) and increasing open access resources and services (n=11, 47.8%). More so, most academic libraries are assisting in virtual education and teaching endeavors of faculty and students (n=13, 56.5%). In addition, some medical and public libraries are bolstering public health safety through health literacy (n=12, 52.2%), supporting research efforts, and engaging in virtual reference services, among others. In order to carry out these services, libraries are harnessing several educational, social networking, communication, and makerspaces technologies. Most of the libraries in the included studies reported budgetary challenges, and the need for new ICT infrastructure and Internet service as they move their services online. Conclusion – This review found that libraries are adapting in a number of ways to continue their roles in meeting patrons’ needs in spite of the growing challenges posed by COVID-19 restrictions and lockdown. For libraries to thrive in these trying times, there must be a well-structured approach to ensuring continuity of services. Libraries should prioritize the acquisition of electronic resources as well as increase their efforts to digitize resources that are only available in printed copies. As library services have predominantly shifted online, there should be concerted effort and support from government and funding agencies to equip libraries with the technological facilities needed to provide cutting-edge services. The quality assessment of the included studies shows that there is need for rigor and transparency in the methodological description of studies investigating library services provision in a pandemic. This review provides an overview of the ways libraries have responded to the challenges posed by a global pandemic, and hence will be of use and interest to all librarians especially those in health and academic sectors.

Adoption and implementation of evidence-based library acquisition of electronic resources

Evidence-based librarianship (EBL) has been in the literature for around 20 years, and has received a mixed level of acceptance and adoption in its implementation. The purpose of this study is to identify the determinants of EBL adoption and implementation in library acquisition decision of electronic resources. The Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) model, Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT) theory and EBL model were used to form the research framework in order to investigate the adoption and implementation of evidence-based acquisition (EBA). Questionnaires were used as data collection tool. Data were collected from 250 respondents comprising librarians from academic, public and special libraries. The data were analyzed descriptively using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) v24. The assessment of the measurement and structural model was executed using Smart-PLS (SEM) 3.0. The reflective model was found to be valid and reliable with the Cronbach’s Alpha above 0.70, CR value and AVE of 0.80-0.90. Fornell-Larcker Criterion and Item Cross-loading recordings revealed that the constructs did not discriminate each other. Path coefficient analysis was performed to test the hypothesis in the identification of significant relationship that resulted in Relative Advantage, Compatibility and Top Management Support as the determinants of EBA of electronic resources Although no significant relationship was found between EBL Adoption and Implementation, an indication of practice was recorded in the level of implementation analysis. Further action and future research for libraries were suggested.

Ethical Dilemmas in Collection Development of Open Access Electronic Resources

ABSTRACTAll across the United States universities are being called into critical conversations about social justice. The American Library Association Code of Ethics calls on librarians to “uphold the principles of intellectual freedom” and “distinguish between our personal convictions and professional duties.” Our ethics shape our engagement in these critical conversations. This article presents two ethical dilemmas experienced in Open Access electronic resource collection development and acquisition. Discussed first is the discovery and remediation of sharp practice in article processing charges. Second is the challenge of commercial Open Access projects and the role of libraries as investors of production. The author discusses how library professional ethics are applicable to and stretched by the goals of Open Access.

Planning a collection development policy for effective e-resources’ acquisition in federal universities in South-South Zone, Nigeria

The study investigated planning as a factor for effective acquisition of electronic resources in the federal universities in South-South Nigeria. A descriptive survey design was used for the study. A sample size of 614 comprising the 69 Professionals and 85 Para-professional Librarians, 10 IT personnel / System analyst and 450 Post graduate students registered 2014/ 2015 session in the three federal universities in South-South Nigeria was used. A questionnaire of 9 items was used for data collection. Out of total number 614 copies of questionnaire distributed, 578 copies were returned and analyzed using frequency, tables, percentages and mean rating. Findings revealed from the study that e-resource are preferred by users to print, acquisition librarians are involved in planning for acquisition and management of e-resources, staff training and retraining is required to update knowledge and information on e-resources. Libraries should not depend on government alone for funds of e-resources. Based on the findings, recommendations were made. Implications for the study were enumerated and suggestions for further research made.Keywords: Planning, Collection development policy, E-resources, University libraries, South-South zone

Digital Rights Management: The Librarian’s Guide

Digital Rights Management: The Librarian’s Guide offers a comprehensive view of how digital rights management (DRM) shapes all kinds of library decision-making regarding acquisition, access, and management of electronic resources. It also explores how DRM can both be both a blessing and a curse for the continued evolution of electronic information.

Impact of electronic resources use on academic performance of Undergraduates in Nigeria

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of usage of e-resources on the academic performance of the undergraduates of Federal University Oye-Ekiti, (FUOYE), Nigeria. This research is a survey. The population for this study includes the final year students of faculties of Social Science, Humanities and Science, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria, of the 2015/2016 academic session. 150 students were chosen by simple random sampling. The data collected were analyzed quantitatively with the use of Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). Figures and tables were used to present the results of the findings. From the total of 150 copies of questionnaires distributed, 144 copies, representing 96%, were filled and returned. Results indicated that use of electronic resources had a positive impact on students’ academic performance. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that more emphasis should be laid on the acquisition of electronic resources so as to give room for wider and multiple access to information resources in order to meet the information needs of diverse users.Keywords: e- resources, e-books, e-journals, academic performance, Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE)

ISTEX: a powerful project for scientific and technical electronic resources archives

To strengthen and facilitate French research: this is the goal the Ministry of Higher Education and Research wants to achieve with its ISTEX project. France, along with the rest of the world, has faced huge price increases in the acquisition of academic electronic resources during the last decade, and its institutions are now finding it difficult to pay to access them. The Ministry has therefore decided to invest in an extensive electronic archives acquisition programme in order to give the academic and research community nationwide access to a very large corpus of data in all disciplines. This project will consist of two phases: acquisition of the archives themselves and the development of a single platform to host the data. This platform will offer seamless unique access to all the resources purchased and will provide a range of efficient services to researchers.

E-Resource Acquisitions in Academic Library Consortia

Scholarly publishing is the information marketplace in which academic libraries function, and major shifts in traditional publishing and pricing models are in process. Library consortia have long been viewed as a means of increasing purchasing power and reducing costs. In late 2010, the Five College Libraries (FCL) hired R2 Consulting, LLC to investigate and make recommendations regarding how the Libraries cooperate more closely on the acquisition, management, and delivery of electronic resources. This study examines and evaluates how other academic library consortia are licensing and acquiring electronic books, databases, journals and streaming media. The organizations, activities, processes, history and trends of e-resource acquisitions and collection development at the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries (CARL), Orbis Cascade Alliance (OCA), Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN) and Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC) are presented with data collected by the author. Additional context is provided through a literature review, and a discussion of current practices provides a sampling of the new directions academic library consortia are taking and the challenges they face.

Presentation of the selected French libraries and the French library system

ABSTRACTThe Selected French libraries (Bibliotheque nationale de France, Bibliotheque publique d’information, multimedia library of the Cité des sciences et de l’industrie as well as Paris public libraries) are presented in the article. France does not have a union catalogue at the national level, therefore libraries use different platforms for shared cataloguing and compile more union catalogues. According to their needs, French libraries join into consortia for the acquisition of electronic resources, which can be either geographically or thematically delimited or formed by the institutions of the same status. The author believes that the Slovenian library network works well considering much smaller budget for culture and higher education in comparison with France. To improve its performance, more funds would have to be allocated and higher reputation of the library profession achieved, comparable to the situation in France. Digitization of resources is the area where the Slovenian librarianship lags most behind the French one.

E-book Workflow from Inquiry to Access: Facing the Challenges to Implementing E-book Access at the University of Nevada, Reno

As e-book holdings in academic libraries increase, libraries must face the challenge of how to manage the acquisition and access of both individual and package e-book titles. While libraries have developed workflows to effectively handle electronic journal holdings and packages, e-books do not fit neatly into those models. An e-book workflow shares facets of both monographic and electronic resource acquisition and access, with both title-level and package acquisition and management issues. This article will explore how a cross-departmental team in the University of Nevada, Reno Libraries collaborated to analyze and refine the workflow for the e-book lifecycle, from the point of inquiry through acquisition, access management, and end of life.

The Yogi Berra school of library science

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide insights into issues encountered in maintaining library technologies on a limited budget and with limited personnel.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses real world experiences to report on collection development decisions as they relate to electronic resources in an era of shrinking budgets.FindingsThe percentage of library budgets allocated for the acquisition of electronic resources has risen steadily in an online era. As state legislatures across the country cut funding, librarians must cut expenditures accordingly. With electronic resources comprising a large segment of overall expenditures, cuts in this area are unavoidable.Originality/valueThis paper examines the decision‐making process in the context of renewing or canceling underused electronic resources in an era of shrinking library budgets. It takes a humorous approach in suggesting that librarians need to look beyond emotions and base their decisions on facts.

The Acquisition and Management of Electronic Resources: Can Use Justify Cost?

As library collections increasingly become digital, libraries are faced with many challenges regarding the acquisition and management of electronic resources. Some of these challenges include copyright and fair use, the first‐sale doctrine, licensing versus ownership, digital preservation, long‐term archiving, and, most important, the issue of rising cost. How can public libraries continue to justify the rising cost of acquiring and maintaining digital resources? Can use justify cost? In this article, we report on a case study that describes a public library approach to the acquisition and management of digital resources. The Tulsa City‐County Library has established a special committee to evaluate electronic resources and make decisions regarding existing and potential resources. Several of the databases to which the Tulsa City‐County Library subscribes are discussed, as well as the methods used for evaluating those resources.

Using Blogs to Stay Current About Electronic Resources

Medical librarians today need to stay current about issues involving the acquisition and utilization of electronic resources, from licensing issues to digital rights, from copyright to open access. From court cases to changes in publishers’ policies, librarians must stay on top of new developments to best serve their user communities; these issues are best followed through electronic updates via the Internet. This column takes a brief look at one source of information, blogs, and provides a short list of some quality examples for locating current developments.

Breaking the bottleneck: Using SERU to facilitate the acquisition of electronic resources

Breaking the bottleneck: Using SERU to facilitate the acquisition of electronic resources

Evolving Concepts and Business Models for Acquiring Electronic Resources

ABSTRACT Libraries, publishers, and agents all face unique challenges related to the acquisition of electronic resources. Among the many variables that figure into the acquisition of an e-resource are access rights, pricing models, and packaging options. This article looks at several of these variables from both the publisher's and the agent's view, evaluating the current state of affairs and addressing forthcoming developments.

Organizational Approaches to Electronic Resource Acquisition

Electronic resource acquisition can be a complex process. Materials budgets, acquisition decision making, and workflow coordination all have important rol to play in the process. How libraries choose to address these areas, and what impact funding and staffing may have, are described through an exploration and discussion of qualitative and quantitative data compiled from interviews with 24 academic libraries. The study demonstrates that libraries are experimenting with different organizational approaches to electronic resource acquisition decision making.

Implementing a national virtual library for higher institutions in Nigeria

The Virtual Library provides access to tools such as databases, electronic journals, alerting services, online reference tools, and quality-selected web resources that improve the quality of teaching and research. Unfortunately various virtual library initiatives in Nigeria within the past six years have remained a mirage. This desk study examined the national library virtual project initiatives and identifies the challenges of its implementation within the Nigerian context. Misconceptions of what constitute a virtual library, unavailability of the basic information infrastructure, poor policy implementation and lack of web technologies skilled digital/systems librarians have been identified as some of the challenges in the implementation of the national Virtual Library Project. The study also highlights the process of building a virtual library, collection development, acquisition and access of electronic resources in the virtual library, which are the basic skills required for the deployment and sustainability of the national virtual library.

The Keys to Successful Change Management for Serials

ABSTRACT Recent debate among librarians focuses on how the acquisition and management of electronic resources can be incorporated into traditional technical services workflows. From the perspective of serials acquisition, this may mean many changes and new responsibilities. But the degree of success in such undertakings depends foremost on whether or not an organization can reconcile new expectations and new responsibilities with the traditional organizational culture and structure. Serials departments, serials librarians, and serials staff are often on the front lines of dealing with the changes that new technologies, new work processes, and new organizational relationships can bring. In order to make the most of these changes with respect to serials acquisition and management, the author proposes four key areas that any library should examine before contemplating change: (1) The information and serials environment, (2) organizational structure and culture, (3) workflow analysis and staff resources, and (4) the implementation and use of technology.

Strengthening information provision in Nigerian university libraries through information communication technologies

PurposeTo review the current state of information communication technologies (ICT) application for information provision in Nigerian university libraries and make suggestions to enable them take fuller advantage of ICT facilities to provide information more effectively to users.Design/methodology/approachRecent library and information science literature on university libraries and ICT application in Nigeria is reviewed to expose the state‐of‐the‐art and hence the problems which beset the university libraries in Nigeria as regards ICT application.FindingsIdentified obstacles militating against effective application of ICT in university libraries to include inadequate funding, inadequate electricity supply, shortage of competent manpower for operation and maintenance of ICT facilities, lukewarm attitude of the Nigerian government towards the provision of ICT facilities and low level of computer literacy among Nigerians.Research limitations/implicationsPhysical visits were not paid to the university libraries; conclusions drawn are based on experience and evidence from current librarianship literature on Nigeria.Practical implicationsA very useful source of information on how to ameliorate the problem of low level of ICT application for information provision in university libraries in Nigeria.Originality/valueProvides very useful and practical suggestions to enable university libraries in Nigeria take advantage of ICT facilities to provide information more effectively to their users. These include massive infusion of funds into purchase of ICT facilities, provision of constant electricity supply, greater commitment of university library staff to computerization efforts in their libraries, training and retraining opportunities for librarians in computer literacy and involvement of libraries in cooperative acquisition of electronic information resources through consortia.

Implementing EBSCO's A-to-Z and LinkSource Products for Improved Electronic Journal Management

SUMMARY As the acquisition of electronic resources continued to grow at the George T. Harrell Library, so too did the need for automated management of the links to those resources, for better tracking of changes in coverage, and for a more efficient compilation of usage statistics for collection development. Several products were tested and in May 2004, the EBSCO A-to-Z and LinkSource products were purchased as part of a package that included several full-text databases. This article will discuss why the EBSCO products were selected; what was done to prepare for the implementation process; how the transition was made from a static A-to-Z Web list of journals; and what are the benefits and challenges of using the EBSCO products to date.