Malaysian Libraries Research Articles

The Predictive Machine Learning Model towards Effect of Human Resources Management Practices and Job Performances Among Academic Librarians in Malaysia

Job performance is a vital component of organizational success, directly impacting productivity, efficiency, and overall workplace effectiveness. For academic librarians, job performance is especially crucial in delivering high-quality library services, supporting academic programs, and fostering a conducive learning environment. However, there is a lack of literature on job performance in the context of academic librarianship in Malaysia. By conducting a thorough literature review and utilizing empirical research, this study aims to provide insights into the factors influencing job performance and strategies to enhance the job performance of academic librarians. In addition, the target population was the entire librarian’s public university libraries in Malaysia with 20 public university libraries involved. Primary data for 287 respondents of academic library was analysing using multiple linear regression analysis (MLR). The software used for analysing is Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). In a conclusion, the findings of this study found many factors contribute to job performance of academic library. This study provides recommendations to ultimately improving job performance among academic librarians in Malaysia.

In the line of disaster: preparedness and effective response of academic libraries in Malaysia

PurposeThis study examines the preparedness and responsiveness of Malaysian academic librarians in handling disruptions in library services during a disaster.Design/methodology/approachThis qualitative approach involved semi-structured interviews with decision-makers, chief librarians and library managers from five selected public universities.FindingsThematic and qualitative data analysis produced several key themes based on (1) disaster preparedness involving policies, plans, asset protection, risk management, coordination of disaster management and preparative measures; and (2) disaster response involving strategies for information and communication access, community engagement, emergency response teams and procedures, and resource availability.Practical implicationsThe findings are expected to be useful for policymakers in formulating policies and guidelines for library disaster management plans.Social implicationsThe interruptions of academic library services during a disaster may result in the disruption of the information sources and social information networks of students, academics and researchers alike. Effective disaster management is also the library’s responsibility to protect collections that belong to society at large.Originality/valueThis is one of the first attempts in disaster management research to focus on the preparedness and responses of academic libraries in Malaysia in the face of disasters. Therefore, the results of this study can be used as a baseline for policymakers to prepare policies, guidelines and manuals for management in the event of a disaster.

Di Sebalik Isu Perkahwinan Nadrah: Tumpuan Terhadap Pandangan Ahmad Luthfi dalam Majalah Qalam (1950–1963)

The issue of Nadrah began to draw the attention of the world community in the early 1950s due to the trial of custody rights between her Malay adoptive mother and her Dutch biological parents. This event sparked a major polemic since it touched the sensitivities of the Malays and Muslims. Among the dominant issues in the Nadrah tragedy was the issue of Nadrah’s marriage, which had become the main topic in the newspapers and magazines at that time, including the Qalam magazine. Compared to other print media, the Qalam magazine seemed to emphasise more on reports that were based on Islamic beliefs and morals in relation to the issue of Nadrah. In relation to this, the current study examined the perception of Ahmad Luthfi, as a founder, publisher, and author of the Qalam magazine, on the issue of Nadrah’s marriage from the aspects of age limit for marriage, Islamisation and faith, women’s freedom, the role of kadi (a judge)/wali (Islamic legal guardian) and Islamic administrative law. The resources and materials in this article were obtained from the National Archives of Malaysia, Tun Sri Lanang Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Library, Universiti Malaya (UM) Main Library, UM Za’ba Memorial Library, UM Ahmad Ibrahim Library, UM Academy of Islamic Studies Library, and other sources. The findings of the study show that Ahmad Luthfi had a clear perception of the Islamic law based on the Al-Quran and Hadith. He would not compromise with those who undermined Islamic law. His views had invited positive and negative reactions from various parties.

Library Services Provision During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Comparative Study Between Developing Countries

The research explores a comparative study between Bangladesh and Malaysia library services during a Covid-19 pandemic. The study also intends to determine how the library responds, how they provide the services, the working hours, and their role in this pandemic time. A qualitative research approach has been used for data collection by interviewed three respondents to get their opinion to answer the research questions. The interviews were recorded, transcribe, and analyzed thematically. Many libraries are physically closed during a pandemic, but the patrons can still use the services through the online system. Library revamped its website many pages like Facebook, reassigned resources, and planned remote systems; all activities are robust online planning. Most libraries use social media as a tool to communicate and less use physical communication. Library staffs are working from their home, and it is quite challenging. They have to adapt to the situation because this is a new trend in working routines. The libraries see their role is crucial and the services collectively to the community at this uncertain times. This study shows society how they serve the public and cope with the pandemic.

Detecting Change in a Volatile Curve United State Stock Market (US SM) with the Use of Automated Decomposition for Time Series Components

The main reason for this investigation is to use manual process of identification of time series components with two types of automated decomposition for time series known as automated BFTSC (break for time series components) and, automated GFTSC (Group for time series components) in detecting change in a volatile curve united states stock market (US SM). In identification of components of time series present in the seasonal data of US stock market. The data US Stock Market was a monthly data from January 2001 until December 2018 and a total of 18 years. The stock market of US is also available as a secondary data at the DataBank of University Utara Malaysia Library. The weaknesses of BFAST were corrected by the extension of BFAST to BFTSC and GFTSC. Both were created to capture the cyclical and irregular components that were not captured by BFAST technique and it was included in the methodology of this study. BFTSC and GFTSC were considered to provide a combined image of all the four components of time series while GFTSC had additional advantage of providing equations to the components automated. Evaluation using simulation data and empirical data vindicated the accuracy of BFTSC and GFTSC based on linear trend less volatile data. They are effective and better than BFAST because it was able to identify 100% of the data with the basic four time series components monthly. Both techniques detects 99 % of the entire components in the time series data in a linear trend data.

Technology, Organization and Environment as Strategic Factors of Big Data Analytics Readiness and Acquisition Intention to Adopt Big Data Analytics in Malaysian Libraries

Technology, Organization and Environment as Strategic Factors of Big Data Analytics Readiness and Acquisition Intention to Adopt Big Data Analytics in Malaysian Libraries

Forecasting Australia Gross Domestic Product (GDP) under Structural Change (SC) Using Break for Time Series Components (BFTSC)

The reason for this research is to enable us know the use BFTSC (break for time series components) in identification of the structural change and the time series components existing in Australia GDP. The data (Australia GDP) statistics spanned for period of fifty five years. The GDP of Australia is a higher information gotten from the StreamData of Universiti Utara Malaysia Library. The precincts of BFAST in terms of structural change was advanced to become BFTSC. BFTSC was created from basic research conducted on BFAST, results shows an innovative technique that captures the recurring (cyclicals) and non-recurring cyclical (irregular) components that was not included in the original BFAST technique and it was included in the methodology of this study. BFTSC was created to give a mutual image of all the required time series components. The subsequently forecasting technique was determined and forecast is made.

Empowering Rural Public Library Users Towards Sustainable Community Development Goal.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a set of international targets that were developed in 2015 by the United Nations. These goals aim to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity among human kind for all by the year 2030. They are divided into 17 goals and 169 targets that cover all aspects of life – including education, health care, housing, food, energy and climate, peace and justice, governance and sustainable economic growth. Plus, to ensure peace and prosperity. Empowerment is very important element for a community to become developed and to sustain the development. To be able to have self-empowerment, one must first have a sense of self-help and self-determination. Self-help and self-determination are related to the idea that helping one’s self will create collaboration and improve one’s quality of life (Christenson, 1989). Power in community development refers to the ability to influence change rather than the power to exploit or dominate others, it is an action of choice. This paper introduces Rural Community Learning Network (RCLN) Traits Model which offers a helpful insight for rural communities to value and support rural public library as community sustainable development center. This model was develop using qualitative approach through interviews with the rural public libraries’ staffs, users and non-users, observations, and examinations of documents. Thematic analysis has been used to identify the empowerment sustainability characters for the traits model. This study concluded that rural public libraries in Malaysia had not fully implemented the empowerment elements which is identified as an important element in rural libraries and community development.

Effects of Building Materials on Building Thermal Load in Malaysian Institutional Library

Green building, net-zero energy building, low energy building, and sustainable building are the common terms being used in the building industry nowadays, with the primary aim to produce buildings with low energy and low carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Different types of building materials can have significant implications for energy efficiency, especially in the warming climate. The energy crisis, future global warming, and climate change can be mitigated by choosing the right building materials, which will also lower the building's energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. This paper presents the effects of different building materials on the cooling capacity and cooling energy consumption of a building for four (4) different climate change weather data, namely, the present time scenario, the 2020s, 2050s, and 2080s time scenario using TRNSYS simulation software. The main library of a university in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, was chosen as the case study. Three (3) types of building materials were studied, namely, Type 1 (brick walls with single-glazed windows), Type 2 (foam insulation cavity walls with double-glazed windows), and Type 3 (air gap cavity walls with double-glazed windows). The simulation results showed that the Type 2 building materials could reduce the yearly cooling energy consumption by 14.5%, compared with the current building materials (brick walls with single-glazed windows). The Type 3 building materials (air gap cavity walls with double-glazed windows) with the lower installation were wound to reduce the yearly cooling energy consumption by 9% compared with the Type 1 building materials. For architects, designers, politicians, and library administrators, the research's conclusions have immediate practical implications that will help them make decisions and implement energy-saving plans. In the end, this research helps libraries in Malaysia remain sustainable and resilient in the face of global warming and the energy crisis.

A study on the implementation of Koha cataloguing module in Malaysian academic libraries

The study explores the experiences of the Malaysian academic libraries’ cataloguers in their use of the cataloguing module of Koha Open Source Software (OSS). The purpose of this study is to shed light on issues concerning Koha cataloguing module and the local practices in policy and procedure while utilising the module. An exploratory sequential research design was adopted for the study involving an online focus group interview and a questionnaire survey as the data collection techniques. Twenty-two academic libraries from public and private universities in Malaysia were purposively sampled. A total of six academic libraries participated in the focus group, whereas 41 participants took part in the survey. The study highlighted academic libraries in Malaysia embrace Koha for two main reasons - popularity as and OSS and budget constraints for a proprietary library system. The findings of the study revealed that missing records is a significant issue that cataloguers will have to deal with and there is a lack of certain features available in the Koha cataloging module, such as the label creator and search feature. Apart from that, using Koha for cataloguing does not affect the cataloguing practices in terms of policy, but it does affect the cataloguing procedure. Satisfaction level with Koha cataloguing module is high. Other academic libraries in Malaysia that have not yet made a move to Koha or are in the midst of doing so would benefit from this study.

Formulating an Assessment Tool for the Implementation of Green Initiatives in Library

Amidst environmental crisis, the role of built environment sector becomes even more vital as it formed capacity in contributing a substantial factors to reduce energy usage and emission of greenhouse gas to atmosphere. Library specifically, act as crucial function in extending the agenda of promoting environmental practice. However, limited rating system explicitly for library’s green initiatives makes it challenging for library to implement these initiatives due to lack of proper guidelines. Hence, this study was conducted to examine existing checklists measuring green initiatives in library and to formulate assessment list for evaluating sustainable library’s operational initiatives. Systematic literature reviews were conducted in establishing the evaluation checklist, in which three existing checklists related to green initiatives in library were compared and referred to. The assessment checklist developed in this study identifies 107 initiatives related to facilities can be implemented by existing libraries in Malaysia. The result of this study serves as a basis for libraries in Malaysia to environmentally improve its facilities.

Factors influencing knowledge sharing practices among librarians in the Malaysian academic libraries

Several scholars have identified knowledge sharing as a primary focus area within the scope of knowledge management. Many organisations today have also recognised this act as one of the essential resources in the management of their institutions. Hence, this research sought to utilise the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) as the underlying research framework to examine the attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioural control towards the library staff's knowledge sharing intentions. Five academic (university) libraries in Malaysia were chosen as the sources for the study's sampling, while both an electronic mailed survey questionnaire and hard copies were utilised in collecting the data from the respondents. In the data analysis, descriptive statistics, mean value, and standard deviation methods were applicable in the data. The study indicated that knowledge sharing practises substantially affected some percentage of the study hypotheses. Based on the rule of thumb, the following hypotheses were supported: H5, H6, H7, and H8, but the hypotheses that follow, H1, H2, H3, and H4 are non-supported. In contrast, it was discovered that knowledge sharing practises deviate from the projected level of intention by about 0.2 %. The predicted intention is 5.9 % based on attitude, perceived behavioural control, and subjective norm; however, attitude is predicted to be 1.3 % based on trust and relationship. It determines that the most likely explanation for the 37.4 % explained by teamwork skills is perceived behavioural control. But corporate culture showed that the subjective norm was the most important cause because it accounted for 37.9 % of the results.

Assessing the Big Data Analytics Readiness based on Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) Framework of Malaysian Libraries: Descriptive Analysis

The growing interest in big data is mostly due to its enormous potential for revealing previously unknown patterns or profiles that aid organisations in making critical service decisions. Following other sectors' adoption of big data, the information services sector, such as libraries, has recently jumped on board. Although libraries face challenges in adopting new service models to assist with the transformation of data into information, big data has been identified as one of the potential mechanisms for enhancing service delivery. Libraries must increase their technology knowledge and capability in order to capitalise on emerging opportunities in the developing field of library data analytics, which provides fresh insights into established service models. Regardless of the dedication of libraries and information services to promote big data, the readiness of libraries, as well as their staffs and infrastructure, such as technology, is critical to the effective deployment of big data. Inadequate applications of big data prior to maturity might backfire and result in long-lasting operational and institutional mutilation. Thus, this study used a quantitative approach to investigate the readiness (Technology-Organization-Environment readiness) of Malaysian libraries for big data potentials. The findings indicate that the dimensions of Malaysian libraries' readiness for BDAs are primarily high-level (in nature, encompassing technological, organizational, and environmental dimensions. The study included academic libraries, public libraries, and special libraries, and utilised a survey research methodology involving 370 libraries. The findings of the study are expected to provide important insight into the factors affecting the preparation of Malaysian libraries for big data potentials and the projected effect of increased/lower change readiness in Malaysian libraries.

Thermal Comfort of Indoor Open Spaces at University Library in Malaysia

The issues of improving thermal comfort inside the building have become a global point of research interest attributed to the realization that people spend more than 90% of their time in the indoor environment. This study investigated the thermal comfort temperature range for indoor open spaces in second level of the Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) library. The study conducted through subjective measurement (thermal sensation questionnaire) and physical measurement (air temperature, relative humidity, air velocity, mean radiant temperature measurement). A total of 120 occupants completed the thermal sensation questionnaire of indoor open spaces for morning and afternoon sessions for six days. Physical measurements data were also collected at eight measurement sampling point across the indoor open space for six days. The linear regression analysis for air temperature with thermal sensation vote (TSV) and predicted mean vote (PMV) for both morning session and afternoon session shows a good fit of the regression model on the observed data. It shows 70% of the variation in the output variable of TSV and PMV can be explained by the input variables of air temperature. The thermal comfort temperature ranges for TSV of -0.5 to +0.5 were within the range of 24.17 ºC to 25.01ºC for morning session and 23.63 ºC to 24.20 ºC for the afternoon air temperature. In addition, the thermal comfort temperature ranges for PMV of -0.5 to +0.5 were 24.03 ºC to 25.15 ºC for morning session and 23.70 ºC to 24.47 ºC for the afternoon. By using linear regression equation, the relation between air temperature, PMV and TSV were obtained.

IMPROVING THE EFFICIENCY OF UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES IN MALAYSIA USING ZERO-SUM GAINS DEA MODEL

Measuring the efficiency and optimizing available resources are vital for library management. This research empirically examines the measurement of efficiency of 10 public university libraries in Malaysia and provides an opportunity for inefficient libraries to improve their efficiency by proposing the appropriate number of resources. Data encompassing the number of staff, materials availability, and material circulation were gathered between 2016 and 2019. This study implements the zero-sum gains data envelopment analysis (ZSG-DEA) model to improve the efficiency. The findings show that in the early stage, five libraries were efficient in 2016 and 2018 while six libraries were efficient in 2017 and 2019. Comparable efficiency scores between conventional DEA and ZSG-DEA can be seen as all the inefficient libraries manage to attain better efficiency scores. Overall, all inefficient libraries can increase their efficiency rates. Despite the scores still not achieving the highest rate of efficiency, this study may assist librarians on managing library operations efficiently.

Tool for Assessing Green Initiatives in Library or Green Initiatives in Library: Formulating an Assessment Tool

Amid environmental crisis, the role of built environment sector becomes even more vital as it has a potential to make a significant contribution in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. Library specifically, plays a crucial role in supporting the mission of promoting environmental practice. However, limited rating system explicitly for library’s green initiatives makes it challenging for library to implement these initiatives due to lack of proper guidelines. Hence, this study was conducted to examine existing checklists measuring green initiatives in library and to formulate a checklist for assessing green initiatives in library’s facilities. A systematic review was conducted to establish an assessment checklist, in which three existing checklists related to green initiatives in library were compared and referred to. The assessment checklist developed in this study identifies 107 initiatives related to facilities can be implemented by existing libraries in Malaysia. The result of this study serves as a basis for libraries in Malaysia to environmentally improve its facilities.

Understandings the Reading Habit and Reading Attitudes Among Students in Research University Library in Malaysia

Reading is one of the activities known to give a lot of benefits to readers. In the context of university students, reading can improve their academic performance. However, literature indicated that students read-only to pass their examination and not for pleasure and acquiring knowledge. The study reported in this paper investigated the reading habit and reading attitudes among students in the research university library in Malaysia. It is believed that positive reading attitudes towards education materials or non-education materials lead to positive reading experiences, which also lead to higher academic performance. A descriptive study used questionnaires as an instrument of a quantitative method. Convenience sampling was employed and 400 respondents from four research university status libraries were selected. Moderate levels of reading attitude were obtained from the result of the study, in which several variables produced a significant relationship in the reading attitude (education background and favorite activities during leisure time). The findings of this study have shown the behavior of academic library users in terms of reading habits, reading attitudes, and selection of reading materials. Several suggestions such as providing a variety of reading material (sense of humor and humanities, public figures and tv personalities) and reading encouragement activities have been suggested. This study provides useful inputs to the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) in constructing effective strategies to cultivate reading habits among reluctant readers in public universities.

Sex Manuals in Malay Manuscripts as Another Transcript of Gender Relations

This article interprets the narratives of sex manuals produced within the Malay-Indonesian archipelago before the coming of Western colonialism and the dawn of postcolonial Islamic resurgence. In the collection of Malaysian libraries and museums, these manuscripts are largely classified as Kitab Jimak and Kitab Tib. They are all written in the Malay language with indigenous references, though the contents are likely derived from a common genre of texts transmitted from an early Arab-Islamic world and circulated within the region before the coming of European colonialism. The corpora of sexual knowledge in these texts emphasises the valorisation of sexual pleasure in conjugal relationships. Through an extensive list of prescriptions—from sexual techniques to diet, food taboos, medicine, pharmacopoeia, mantras, charms, and astrological knowledge—a near-sacral sexual experience is aspired. Couples are guided in their attainment of pleasure (nikmat) through the adherence of Islamic ethics (akhlak), rules (hukum), and etiquette (tertib). The fulfilment of women’s desire in the process is central in these observances. Nevertheless, despite placing much emphasis on mutual pleasure, these texts also contain ambiguous and paradoxical pronouncements on the position of women, wavering from veneration to misogyny. The article also highlights how intertextual studies of similar texts throughout the Islamic world can be a new focus of studies on the early history of gender and sexuality in Islam.

Environmental Sustainability Practices in Rural Libraries

The key purpose of this study was to investigate the implementation of environmental sustainability practices in Malaysian rural libraries. A qualitative approach was employed through interviews, observations, and examinations of documents related to the six (6) rural libraries which were involved in this study. This study concluded that rural libraries in Malaysia had not fully implemented the environmental sustainability elements as suggested by the International Federation of LibraryAssociation (IFLA). Nevertheless, rural libraries in Malaysia had put good effort into environmental sustainability practices.

Online Library Systems for Malaysian School Libraries: An Experimental Approach

This paper describes the development of two experimental school library information systems for Malaysian schools. The results of a user study, conducted using different sets of questionnaire for both types of schools indicated that students in general, borrowed books from the library by browsing the shelves. Students seldom used the catalogue card for searching and only a small percentage reported that they were able to find the books successfully using the catalogue card. Based on the findings, a conceptual model of the prototype automated catalogue was developed - Virtual Library for use in primary schools, and ELIS for secondary schools. Both systems are divided into two main modules, the Administrator and the User module. User acceptance test showed that the majority of students found the systems user friendly. Students were also successful in the search tasks given. A high majority described the graphical user interface to be attractive and simple. This indicates the feasibility of using the systems for school libraries in Malaysia.