Information Seeking Behavior Of Users Research Articles

Understanding Information Seeking Behavior of Users in Academic Context (A Critical Review of Literature)

Information has become quintessential for everyone. It is hailed as the most valuable resource in modern times1. Owing to the rapid proliferation of technology and increased Internet adoption rate, interacting with this valuable resource has become easy2. Users seek information from myriad sources to satisfy their information needs3. The information needs are secondary needs that arise from some basic needs, which arise in some contexts4. Information seeking behavior is "purposive seeking of information in response to a need to satisfy a goal" 5 . It is a concept of great importance in library and information sciences6, with studies dating back to the early 1900s. With time and advancement in technology, the focus of researchers and scholars shifted from information systems to users' information needs and information use5. The present study has reviewed literature pertaining to various aspects of users' information seeking behavior, such as information sources, information needs, factors, and challenges affecting it in academic settings. The studies reviewed here are mainly from the field of library sciences. This paper concisely attempts to elucidate the basic concepts of information seeking behavior and gauge the influence of technology on users' information seeking practices in academic settings. The review findings suggest that faculty and students' information seeking behavior is concerned chiefly with their academic lives. The Internet is the most used and popular source/medium for academic information seeking processes. The paper shall assist future researchers, scholars, students interested in understanding the concept of information seeking behavior qua affective factors and technology usage.

Public Libraries in Tirunelveli District with Special Reference to Information Seeking Behaviour of Users

The public library is a common institution that is constructed on the concept of democracy and it is an institution for the public, by the people and of the people. It is provided wholly or partly from public funds, and the use of which is open to all class of persons in the community and freely available to all. It always endeavours to meet the informational, educational and entertaining needs of the community by providing collection and services. Maximum utilization of library resources and services by the users is the main motive of a public library. The present study is to analyse the information-seeking behaviour of selected public library users’ and evaluate the services of public libraries from the user point of view. For this purpose, the researcher randomly selected seven public libraries in the Tirunelveli district.

Information seeking behaviour of users in IIT Patna

This paper examines the information-seeking behaviour of users in IIT Patna. The purpose of the study was to investigate the various aspects of information need and information-seeking behaviour of users in the Central Library of IIT Patna. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted, and 150 questionnaires were dispersed among the research scholars and PG students. The 133 filled questionnaires were received. It has been observed that the majority of respondents (37.8%) visit library once in a week, while 14.1% visit everyday. A large number of respondents visit library for their research work (77.8%). It has depicted that among the various library resources text books (74.8%) are used by large number of respondents, 60.7% respondents have good knowledge about subscribed e-resources while 62% respondents regularly used online journals followed by 45% use e-books and online databases usage is 26%. While assessing the satisfaction level of users with the library services and facilities provided by the Central Library, it has been found that 85.02% respondents are happy with it. The questionnaire attempted to gather the IT knowledge and problems encountered while searching information and also considered suggestions given by research scholars, and PG students. This study suggests proper awareness and training programmes are required to provide more awareness about information resources and library services for maximum utilization of the library.

The Impact of Technology Platform Change on the Information Seeking Behavior of Academicians in Amhara

This study empirically measures the information seeking behavior of academician on the rapid technology platform change environment in the technology institutes found in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. The questionnaire was prepared and distributed to the academicians of technology institutes to collect information about the medium which was used for seeking information. The questions were how devices helped to seek information, the purpose of the information, and challenges faced while seeking information and measure of satisfaction level for the digital library in the institutes. Hence, the study reveals that users used portable devices to seek information from the internet and the digital library rather than using printed copies of information for their academic, research and community service activities. The results show that the information dissemination medium should be changed to electronic information due to the rapid growth of information and communication technology that impacts the information seeking behavior of users, and provide continuous support and training to use the electronic resources.

Information Seeking Behavior of Users of Pharmacy Colleges in Rajasthan

Information Seeking Behavior of Users of Pharmacy Colleges in Rajasthan

User Perception to Analysis and Methods of Using Electronic Resources in Coimbatore District Engineering Colleges: A Study

Academic libraries have for centuries played critically-important roles in supporting research in all subjects and disciplines within their host universities and colleges Rapid advances in technological innovations, affordable high bandwidth networks, explosive growth of web resources, sophisticated search engines, ever growing digital resources and changing information seeking behavior of users are greatly transforming the future of academic libraries. This study surveyed students’ utilization of resources, services, and facilities of the academic libraries in colleges. The findings reveal that most of the respondents visited the library to accessing the e-resources. Google is the mostly preferred search engine for e-resource access. The majority of the respondents preferred the international journals for their studies.

Deployment of Soft Skills for Effective Customer Service in the 21<sup>st</sup> Century Library

The advent of information communication technology in the information environment has brought dramatic changes in the way information is being handled and managed today. This wind of change engineered by ICT has also changed the information seeking behavior of users making them to place more demands on libraries. There is a need for libraries to strive to be effective in their services to customers in order to remain relevant in the information age. The paper considered the deployment of soft skills expressed in terms of staff appearance, approachability, effective communication, positive attitude, ability to cope in difficult situation, and so on, for more effective customer services in the 21st century library. The paper concluded that, effective customer service in libraries is imperative in the 21st century library as it will make library users feel important, improves learning, increases patronage, and promotes library and university image. The outcome of this paper will help the management of libraries irrespective of the type to be more effective in the services they render to their clients. This will ultimately increase patronage and clients retention.

An analysis of interlibrary loan services: a case study of a university in South Africa

PurposeThe landscape of teaching, learning and research has changed requiring the need for diverse information resources. Given the current budgetary constraints and financial conditions prevailing in many universities, sharing of information resources has become a necessity. The Interlibrary Loan (ILL) services have thus become an important service to meet the immediate needs of library users. The aim of this paper is to analyse the ILL services of the North-West University in South Africa from 2006 to 2016. Using statistical data, the paper shows the emerging pattern in borrowing and lending between institutions as well as determines the existence of correlations between borrowing and lending libraries. The results of this study show that ILL amongst libraries has decreased in the past 11 years. A need exists for increased awareness of ILL and there is need for technological innovations that will ensure that library users are able to request for information resources seamlessly.Design/methodology/approachThis is a quantitative study that uses ILL data from the North-West University. Data were downloaded from the SABINET ILL system using the three NWU JC codes. They were then collated and uploaded on excel spreadsheets. In the main, the excel spreadsheets were used to interpret the data. Further, the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software, in particular Spearman’s Correlation Analysis, was used to test correlations between data from libraries that requested information resources from NWU and data from libraries that supplied information resources to NWU during this period using Rumsey’s guidelines to interpret the correlations.FindingsThe findings of the study reveal that ILL among libraries in South Africa had generally declined owing mostly to the proliferation of online resources resulting to changes in user information-seeking behaviour. The decline is despite the challenges of low budgets received by most libraries for the acquisition of information resources. It can also be concluded that public university libraries still value ILL as demonstrated by the high number of items requested from other libraries. The findings also reveal that most ILL activities were conducted by public universities.Research limitations/implicationsIt was not possible to obtain the list of titles that have been requested and also to obtain the user’s details. This would have enabled the authors to determine the type of titles that are being requested, and the users that request them.Practical implicationsILL should continue to be enhanced in view of the challenge of dwindling library budgets against the escalating prices of information resources. There is also a need for user education so that they become aware of the ILL service. From experience, library users normally give up once they realize that what they wanted is not available through the local catalogue and this calls for librarians to create an awareness to users that ILL could help solve their frustrations.Social implicationsThese results show that ILL can play a significant role to level the playing field between the well-resourced libraries in urbanized regions or provinces and the poorly resourced ones in rural regions or provinces. This social justice aspect of ILL is probably the reason why better resourced libraries in South Africa have decided to remain in the scheme unlike other countries where better resourced libraries opted out of reciprocal arrangements with small and medium-sized institutions.Originality/valueThe study adds to a very limited number of studies emanating from Africa. A study of this nature has never been conducted in Africa, as previous studies were nationwide studies. As far as the authors know, this is the first study that uses ILL data to research the impact of the global financial crisis on libraries in Africa.

Perception and Information Seeking Behaviour of Users of Selected Village Libraries in Sathyamangalam Taluk, Tamil Nadu

Village libraries are the standing evidences of social equality. They are the social transformers and cultural protectors. They are the stockrooms of intellectual heredity of our forefathers. They are the drivers of creative leisure activities. This study was conducted with the help of structured questionnaires to analyze the information seeking behavior of different types of the users and randomly selected 140 users of 6 Village Libraries in Taluk. The data was entered and analyzed using simple average and percentage methods.

Future of academic libraries: Opportunities and Challenges

Rapid advances in technological innovations, affordable high bandwidth networks, explosive growth of web resources,sophisticated search engines, ever growing digital resources and changing information seeking behavior of users are greatly transforming the future of academic libraries. The paper outlines the challenges which are very dominant and posing threat for the existence of academic libraries and suitable strategies requires to be made by the libraries and librarians to meet the expectations and information need of their existing and potential clienteles.

Use Pattern and Seeking Behaviour of Students in National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p><span>Determining use patterns and information seeking behaviour of users is consequential to enhance library collections, facilities, and services. This paper tends to investigate information seeking behaviour and use pattern of students on quality of procured information in National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India. Survey research method is adopted for the study. Analysis of data is done through percentage count. It is found that 70 per cent are aware about the e-journals and databases. The result indicated that both print and electronic e-journals are highly preferred by students but access them in other places then departmental library and 32.22 per cent respondents spent time more than hours for internet access. The study will be useful for the academic librarians in improving the shortcomings of their institutes and will procure the required e-journals for their Institutes. </span></p></div></div></div>

Use Pattern and Seeking Behaviour of Students in National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p><span>Determining use patterns and information seeking behaviour of users is consequential to enhance library collections, facilities, and services. This paper tends to investigate information seeking behaviour and use pattern of students on quality of procured information in National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India. Survey research method is adopted for the study. Analysis of data is done through percentage count. It is found that 70 per cent are aware about the e-journals and databases. The result indicated that both print and electronic e-journals are highly preferred by students but access them in other places then departmental library and 32.22 per cent respondents spent time more than hours for internet access. The study will be useful for the academic librarians in improving the shortcomings of their institutes and will procure the required e-journals for their Institutes. </span></p></div></div></div>

The effects of internet filtering on users’ information-seeking behaviour and emotions

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between internet filtering, emotions and information-seeking behaviour.Design/methodology/approachIn total, 15 postgraduate students at an Iranian university participated in the study which involved a questionnaire, search tasks with think aloud narratives, and interviews.FindingsInternet content filtering results in some changes in the information-seeking behaviour of users. Users who face website blocking use a variety of methods to bypass filtering, mostly by using anti-filter software. Filtering encourages users to use channels such as social networking services to share resources and it increases the use of library material by some of the users. Users who face filtering during their search are more likely to visit more pages of results and click on more hits in the results, unlike users who do not experience filtering who rarely go past the first page. Blocking users’ access to content stimulates their curiosity and they become more determined to access the content. In terms of the affective aspect, filtering causes several negative emotions (e.g. anger, disgust, sadness and anxiety) and the main reason for these emotions is not the inability to access information but the feeling of being controlled and not having freedom.Research limitations/implicationsThe study was limited to a small number of postgraduate students in social sciences and not generalisable to all user groups. The implication is that in countries where filtering is used, libraries can play an important role in serving users and reducing users negative emotions, especially if libraries can take advantage of technologies such as social media for their services.Originality/valueThis is first study to address the effects of internet filtering on information-seeking behaviour and emotions. The study shows that internet filtering causes negative emotions and results in some changes in information-seeking behaviour.

Information seeking behavior of users of Central library: A study of IPS Academy, Indore

Information seeking behavior of users of Central library: A study of IPS Academy, Indore

Impact of Electronic Information Seeking Behaviour of Users of Selected Engineering Colleges Affiliated to Anna University in Thiruvallur District: A Case Study

The rapidly change on information and communication technology in the field of library and information science. The library is switching over to traditional sources into adopted electronics sources via latest technology since past 10 years. Now a day’s e-resources are significance role in engineering and technology for provide information for academic and research, at the same time some road block to access of e-resources. The study is required to developing and improving the resource usage for maximum level without the any barrier. This paper discusses the impact of electronics information seeking habits of user of selected engineering colleges in Thiruvallur district. This Study found that (98.55%) respondents accessing e-resources, (99.05%) respondents satisfying the services of e-resources.(97.17%) respondents are aware about e-resources. and also found that e-resources were very dominate role to provide information to users community.

Interlibrary Loan Article Use and User GPA: Findings and Implications for Library Services

A recent institutional study at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay investigated the academic achievement of interlibrary loan (ILL) users as compared to non-ILL users. While this study provided important local insight into ILL use and the demographics of ILL users (class rank, major), it uncovered a rather minor overall GPA difference,.20 GPA points, between ILL users and non-ILL users. However, within these data was an interesting subset that once thoroughly investigated, provided rich details about ILL article use, the users who rely on ILL for articles, and the GPA differences between users across the spectrum of ILL article use. The resulting analysis compares users who use ILL for a large number of articles, those who use ILL for a medium number of articles, those who use ILL for a small number of articles, and those who do not use ILL. Takeaways from the data presented should provide libraries and practitioners with a greater understanding of ILL article use, its role in user information-seeking behaviors, its correlational effect on student academic achievement, and for whom—ILL article users—libraries are incurring the high cost of articles through ILL.

Information Seeking Behavior in an Electronic Environment: A Review

The advancement of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in recent era has made the information services available to the users on their desktop as well as on their laptop and hand held e-book reader. This trend has made the way for tremendous growth of e-resources which is considered as one of the most powerful tools for the global communication and exchange of information. This has made the users to depend on e-resources for their teaching and research activities. The study aimed at finding the information seeking behavior of users in an electronic environment. This paper summarizes the results of thirty six user studies previously conducted in the electronic environment.

A comparative study of perceived work related stress among library staff in two academic libraries in Southern Africa

Purpose – The study sought to explore and compare the current levels of job stress among academic library staff at the University of Botswana (UB) and the University of Zambia (UNZA). The accessible populations consisted of library staff (n=19) at the University of Botswana and (n=25) at the University of Zambia.The purpose of this paper is present the identified perceived sources of and levels of job stress among the librarians at two universities. Design/methodology/approach – This study used a survey method with the questionnaire as the main data collection instrument. Two groups randomly constituted from both universities in the main campuses were purposively selected using non-probability sampling. Gender and status of the sample selected were also carefully considered in the choice of the sample so as to have the perceptions from every gender and category of staff. The main hypothesis of this study is that there is no significant difference in job stress experienced by library staff in the two African universities. Findings – From the findings, it was concluded that library staff at the University of Botswana and University of Zambia were not in an overall state of stress compared with norm data. However, salary-related issues were found to be the highest source of stress among both library staff samples followed by workload related issues. Low stress items among library staff fell into two broad categories namely conflict-related and management-related items. Research limitations/implications – Similar to other empirical studies, this study is not without its limitations. The sample consisted of two public universities in Botswana and Zambia. This may limit the generalization of the results. The study also employed non-probability sampling in the selection of participants. The study can be strengthened by increasing the sample size as the data analysis results and findings may vary substantially when the sample size is increased or decreased. Originality/value – Most studies in library and information science focus on collection development, information retrieval and information seeking behavior of users. Few studies have been undertaken in this area particularly in Southern Africa. It is therefore, hoped that the findings of this study may provide both a starting point for further research in the topic of stress among librarians in Southern Africa. The study may also bring management attention to various issues related to stress among library staff.

Web 2.0 interactivity in open access repositories

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to provide an overview of open access (OA) repositories that have embraced Web 2.0 technologies. The main focus of the paper is to explore the occurrence of Web 2.0 tools used in the open repositories. Design/methodology/approach – Repositories having English as one of the interface/content languages and indexed in Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR) were selected and analyzed under different parameters. Findings – A total of 1,499 open access repositories having English as one of the interface/content languages (75.82 percent of total OA repositories) are developed from 81 nations and only 61 countries have most of their repositories Web 2.0 enabled. About 57 percent (804) repositories make use of Web 2.0 tool/s, 43 percent (608) have yet to avail benefits of Web 2.0 tools while 5.8 percent remain inaccessible (87) during the study period. Though the USA leads in terms of OA repositories, the percentage of Web 2.0 enabled repositories is higher for the UK (75.27 percent) as compared to the USA (51.08 percent). Really Simple Syndication (RSS), a syndication tool, is found in the majority of repositories (736, 91.54 percent) followed respectively by Social Bookmarking and ATOM (syndication tool) in 228 and 160 repositories Research limitations/implications – Repositories have to develop a more productive Web 2.0 outlook in order to converge with an interactive learning model. A follow-up study can explore the use of Web 2.0 tools in open access repositories. The impact of Web 2.0 tools on the associated activities of the users as well as repository administrators can also be carried on. How Web 2.0 tools have helped to improve the services of the repositories and how they have influenced the information seeking behavior of users in the open access repositories can also be researched. Originality/value – The research is the first of its kind and can act as an opener to the issues related to use of Web 2.0 in open repositories.

Online Information Seeking Behaviour of Users of District Central Library, Tirunelveli: A Survey

The object of this survey is to focus on the use of electronic information by the users of District Central Library, Tirunelveli. To-day, we are living in a world of internet. Internet enters every house of the world. More than half of activities of a man are being done by internet. Booking of a ticket for a bus or a train is done at home through internet. To apply for a job in Private or government, online application is required. All most, all results of school exams, Recruitment exams published in internet. In such a situation, public libraries are also expected to provide the readers to make use of online information. District Central Library providing the online information service to the readers since 2005. The object of this survey is to examine the level of satisfaction realized by the readers regarding online Information service.