Use Of Open Access Resources Research Articles

Eficiencia en el uso de bases de datos digitales para la producción científica en universidades de Colombia

This paper presents an assessment of efficiency in the use of digital databases (DD) for scientific production in Colombian accredited universities in 2013. The methodology used was the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The number of DD and the number of tenured professors were used as input. The number of scientific publications indexed in Scopus was used as output. The results show an inefficient use of inputs to produce scientific publications at most of the universities analyzed. The policy recommendations are: the joint purchase of DD, the use of open access resources, and to adjust policies of incentives for research by international trends.

CHALLENGES OF USING ELECTRONIC INFORMATION RESOURCES FOR ACADEMIC RESEARCH BY POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS AT DELTA STATE UNIVERSITY, ABRAKA, NIGERIA

This article reports on a study that explored the challenges of using electronic information resources (EIRs) for academic research by post-graduate students at Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka, Nigeria. The study used a structured questionnaire, distributed to 150 post-graduate students from the faculties of Sciences, Social Sciences and Arts, that is, 50 post-graduate students per faculty, and personal interviews were held with selected individuals within the institution to collect data. The central focus of the study was the post-graduate students’ access to EIRs; the current status of EIRs in their institution; how often they use these resources for academic research purposes; and above all, the challenges that they encounter when using EIRs. The findings showed that post-graduate students’ optimal use of EIRs at DELSU is hampered by limited access to some EIRs due to limited space, low bandwidth, and erratic power supply. It is, therefore, recommended that DELSU should provide adequate space and power supply and should address some of the issues deterring equitable access to EIRs. Development of an institutional repository and use of open access resources would also improve access to scientific and electronic information.

The use of electronic information resources for academic research by postgraduate students at Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria

This study used a structured questionnaire to investigate the usage of Electronic Information Resources (EIR) for academic research by 150 postgraduate students at Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria. Interviews with some students and selected individuals at the institution were also conducted. The study looked into whether postgraduate students had access to EIR; whether they knew how to use computers in order to have access to EIR; the extent to which they knew and were aware of EIR; the current status of EIR at their institution; how often they used these resources for academic research purposes; and the challenges that they encountered in using these resources. The findings of the study show that postgraduate students at Delta State University are aware of the existence of EIR, but the optimal use of these resources is hampered by limited access to some EIR due to lack of information searching skills, limited space, low bandwidth and erratic power supply. It is, therefore, recommended that the institution should provide adequate space, enough power supply and should address some of the issues hindering equitable access to these resources. The development of an institutional repository and the use of open access resources will also improve access to scientific and electronic information by postgraduate students at the institution.

The Use of Electronic Information Resources for Academic Research by Post-Graduates at Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria

This study used a structured questionnaire to investigate the usage of Electronic Information Resources (EIR) for academic research by 150 postgraduate students at Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria. Interviews with some students and selected individuals at the institution were also conducted. The study looked into whether postgraduate students had access to EIR; whether they knew how to use computers in order to have access to EIR; the extent to which they knew and were aware of EIR; the current status of EIR at their institution; how often they used these resources for academic research purposes; and the challenges that they encountered in using these resources. The findings of the study show that postgraduate students at Delta State University are aware of the existence of EIR, but the optimal use of these resources is hampered by limited access to some EIR due to lack of information searching skills, limited space, low bandwidth and erratic power supply. It is, therefore, recommended that the institution should provide adequate space, enough power supply and should address some of the issues hindering equitable access to these resources. The development of an institutional repository and the use of open access resources will also improve access to scientific and electronic information by postgraduate students at the institution.

Open access awareness, use, and perception: a case study of AAU faculty members

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a survey undertaken at Al Ain University of Science and Technology (AAU) to investigate and understand faculty awareness, use and perception of Open Access (OA) resources. Design/methodology/approach – Using a Web-based survey questionnaire, data were collected from full-time faculty members teaching at AAU, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Findings – The study found that faculty members possess a good knowledge and a positive perception of OA resources. They frequently use OA resources for teaching, learning and research activities. However, the findings indicate that female faculty members are more likely to use OA resources than male faculty members. Faculty members with a high level of awareness or use are found to have a highly positive perception of OA resources. Presenting research reports at conferences and seminars or publishing research papers is weakly associated with the level of awareness and use of OA resources. The study revealed no association between the faculty member and their use of OA resources. Research limitations/implications – It is essential for scientific communities to understand the importance of OA resources and how to use them effectively in teaching, learning and research activities. Originality/value – This kind of research is new to the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in general and the UAE in particular. The findings of the study may help to improve the awareness and the use of OA resources among scientific communities not only in the Arab countries but also around the world.

Knowledge of Indonesian University Students on the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources

Graduates of university programs addressing sustainable resource management are likely to shape strategies for natural resource use in the future. Their academic training needs to foster student knowledge of the multiple dimensions of natural resource management. This paper investigates university student understanding of such challenges. We differentiated situational, conceptual, and procedural types of knowledge, and three domains of knowledge (ecological, socio-economic and institutional knowledge), and sampled beginners (third semester) and seniors (seventh semester) of seven natural resource related programs at the leading Indonesian institution of higher education in the field of natural resource management (IPB Bogor; n = 882). The questionnaire consisted of multiple choice and rating scale items covering ‘locally’ relevant open-access resource use issues. With a confirmatory tau-equivalent LISREL model, construct validity was assessed. The ability to extract relevant information from problem descriptions provided (situational knowledge) did not differ between third and seventh semester students. While it was high for ecological and socio-economic items, it was markedly lower for institutional knowledge. Knowledge of relevant scientific concepts (conceptual knowledge) increased in the ecological and socio-economic domains but the effect was small. Conceptual knowledge in the socio-economical and institutional domains tended to be lower than ecological knowledge. Although there was certain improvement, student judgments on the efficacy of resource management options (procedural knowledge) differed strongly from expert judgments for beginners as well as for senior students. We conclude that many of the university students in the sampled programs displayed substantial gaps in their capacity to solve complex, real-world natural resource management problems. Specifically, the socio-economic and institutional knowledge domains—and their integration with ecological knowledge—may require attention by educational planners.

Open access foreign scientific resources and the SciGuide navigator

This paper outlines the reasons that open access resources are required and the developmental patterns of open access models, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of open access information flows; it introduces a navigator that has been created as a tool for the use of open access resources. It also contains an analysis of statistical data about the use of this tool, including the results of surveys and interviews with the experts from one of the top research institutes of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and presents the authors' ideas about the role of libraries in the open access movement.

Markets and rent dissipation in regulated open access fisheries

Using a model of regulated open access resource use with markets, we illustrate the potential complexity of interactions between markets, product quality, excess effort, and regulatory behavior in fisheries. Our model assumes two product types, one of which is processed and storable. The model describes the equilibrium that results when effort responds to open access incentives and when regulators respond to effort growth by mitigating its potential harmful effects on biomass safety. We use numerical simulations to demonstrate a mechanism by which market growth leads to the diversion of raw inputs into the inherently inferior market. The result is a scenario in which rents are dissipated not only because excessive inputs raise costs, but also because inferior product types reduce revenues. We conclude with an illustrative decomposition of rent gains into revenue and cost savings gains from rationalizing a hypothetical fishery, demonstrating the potential significance of market-side rents.

A Model of Regulated Open Access Resource Use

This paper develops a model of regulated open access resource exploitation. The regulatory model assumes that regulators are goal oriented, choosing target harvest levels according to a safe stock concept. These harvest quotas are implemented by setting season lengths, conditioned on the industry fishing capacity. The industry enters until rents are dissipated, conditioned on season length regulations. Harvest levels, fishing capacity, season length, and biomass are determined jointly. Using parameter estimates from the long-regulated North Pacific Halibut fishery, predictions of these variables from the regulated open access model are compared to predictions that arise from the Gordon model.

Values of Marine Recreational Fishing: Measurement and Impact of Measurement

There is a rich literature in economics dealing with the inefficiencies of the competitive allocation of open access resources. Economists working in the area of outdoor recreation have devised several methods for simulating market demand curves for estimating social benefits. Recreational fishing, most especially marine fishing, is one of those activities competing for the use of open access resources that requires the estimation of social benefit functions. In the absence of good information about net social benefits for open access activities, decision makers tend to respond to measures which reflect the total level of economic activ-