Overcoming barriers to te reo Māori usage in libraries: Providing access to Māori knowledge

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Over the last 40 years, New Zealand libraries and information management institutions have been undergoing cultural change in an attempt to improve the services and resources made available to Māori clients. Previous studies have demonstrated that Māori have not been regular users of these institutions, so a critical part of the transformation process has focused on the promotion of the benefits that library and information institutions can provide. This has led to institutions reviewing how they can incorporate distinctively Māori elements within their existing structures. A critical part of this innovation has been the introduction of te reo Māori into areas such as signage, intellectual access, website and online catalogue designs and client services. This article reports on research that has focused on how Māori language into services, and the challenges and opportunities that its usage has for Māori clients and the libraries and information management institutions in New Zealand.

Behavioral intention to use electronic resources by distance learners: An extension of the technology acceptance model

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This study aimed to discover the factors affecting behavioral intention to use electronic resources by distance learners of the Open University of Sri Lanka, and to develop a model explaining behavioral intention to use such resources. Using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the theoretical basis, this study explored the effect of five external factors on the behavioral intention of distance learners toward using e-resources. A quantitative research approach was used, and data were collected from a survey of 379 active undergraduates of the Open University of Sri Lanka. Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted to obtain the results of the study. The results of PLS-SEM reveal that the distance mode of learning and relevance of information are the two major external factors that affect behavioral intention to use e-resources. Computer self-efficacy and user satisfaction also have a significant influence on the dependent variable. Social influence, on the other hand, shows no significant impact. Of the TAM constructs, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user attitudes significantly affect e-resource utilization behavior.

Indicators for Modernising the LIS Internship: Evidences from a systematic literature review

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This systematic literature review was conducted to analyse the existing literature on the internship programme in library and information science (LIS) education. The review was guided by the RAMESES (Realist and Meta-Narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards) method. The data source was Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar. In addition to the three main phases of the review process, mainly identification, screening, and eligibility, data abstraction and analysis are also reported. Findings reveal that studies on LIS internship have focused on satisfaction, educational benefits, educational setting, programme design and roles of the stakeholders involved in internship programmes. Modernising the LIS Internship programme requires a focus on the design of the programme structure with an emphasis on the learning outcomes relating to career readiness. Collaborative learning, service-learning and personal objectives are found to be beneficial. However, there is also an increasing demand for needs of the stakeholders and not just the student-centred learning. Further works into the assessment of the learning outcomes is recommended by the literature.

Allocation of attention to metadata and retrieval functions: Implications for perceived value and open data discovery and reuse

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Metadata and retrieval functions play a vital role in aiding researchers in the discovery and reuse of open data. However, the diversity of metadata elements and retrieval functions poses a challenge to data searchers’ limited attentional resources. This study aims to examine the allocation of attention to metadata elements and retrieval functions and its implications for perceived value and intentions to discover and reuse open data by drawing upon the attentional drift-diffusion model, flow theory, and perceived value literature. An experiment with 48 participants was conducted to explore the proposed relationships. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to analyze the data. The results suggest that researchers’ attention to high-value functions amplifies the perceived value and motivates data discovery intention. Attention to high-value metadata elements motivates data discovery and reuse intention. In contrast, attention to low-value metadata elements hampers the perceived value and inhibits data discovery and reuse intention. These findings put forward a new lens for exploring the attention mechanisms underlying perceived value, data discovery and reuse intention and highlight the important role of the value of metadata and retrieval functions in attention mechanisms. Additionally, this paper identifies the positive effect of perceived ease of use on users’ intentions to find, evaluate, and access open data. Perceived usefulness positively affects users’ intentions to evaluate open data. However, in contrast to perceived intentions to reuse open data assessed by self-reported measures, perceived value is not a salient motivator of open data reuse intention measured by behavioral indicators. These findings reveal the distinct effects of perceived value on perceived intention and intentional action in data reuse. With these insights, this study develops practical strategies to optimize the design of metadata and retrieval functions in data retrieval systems.

Behavioral intention to use electronic resources by distance learners: An extension of the technology acceptance model

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This study aimed to discover the factors affecting behavioral intention to use electronic resources by distance learners of the Open University of Sri Lanka, and to develop a model explaining behavioral intention to use such resources. Using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the theoretical basis, this study explored the effect of five external factors on the behavioral intention of distance learners toward using e-resources. A quantitative research approach was used, and data were collected from a survey of 379 active undergraduates of the Open University of Sri Lanka. Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted to obtain the results of the study. The results of PLS-SEM reveal that the distance mode of learning and relevance of information are the two major external factors that affect behavioral intention to use e-resources. Computer self-efficacy and user satisfaction also have a significant influence on the dependent variable. Social influence, on the other hand, shows no significant impact. Of the TAM constructs, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user attitudes significantly affect e-resource utilization behavior.

Indicators for Modernising the LIS Internship: Evidences from a systematic literature review

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This systematic literature review was conducted to analyse the existing literature on the internship programme in library and information science (LIS) education. The review was guided by the RAMESES (Realist and Meta-Narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards) method. The data source was Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar. In addition to the three main phases of the review process, mainly identification, screening, and eligibility, data abstraction and analysis are also reported. Findings reveal that studies on LIS internship have focused on satisfaction, educational benefits, educational setting, programme design and roles of the stakeholders involved in internship programmes. Modernising the LIS Internship programme requires a focus on the design of the programme structure with an emphasis on the learning outcomes relating to career readiness. Collaborative learning, service-learning and personal objectives are found to be beneficial. However, there is also an increasing demand for needs of the stakeholders and not just the student-centred learning. Further works into the assessment of the learning outcomes is recommended by the literature.

Allocation of attention to metadata and retrieval functions: Implications for perceived value and open data discovery and reuse

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Metadata and retrieval functions play a vital role in aiding researchers in the discovery and reuse of open data. However, the diversity of metadata elements and retrieval functions poses a challenge to data searchers’ limited attentional resources. This study aims to examine the allocation of attention to metadata elements and retrieval functions and its implications for perceived value and intentions to discover and reuse open data by drawing upon the attentional drift-diffusion model, flow theory, and perceived value literature. An experiment with 48 participants was conducted to explore the proposed relationships. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to analyze the data. The results suggest that researchers’ attention to high-value functions amplifies the perceived value and motivates data discovery intention. Attention to high-value metadata elements motivates data discovery and reuse intention. In contrast, attention to low-value metadata elements hampers the perceived value and inhibits data discovery and reuse intention. These findings put forward a new lens for exploring the attention mechanisms underlying perceived value, data discovery and reuse intention and highlight the important role of the value of metadata and retrieval functions in attention mechanisms. Additionally, this paper identifies the positive effect of perceived ease of use on users’ intentions to find, evaluate, and access open data. Perceived usefulness positively affects users’ intentions to evaluate open data. However, in contrast to perceived intentions to reuse open data assessed by self-reported measures, perceived value is not a salient motivator of open data reuse intention measured by behavioral indicators. These findings reveal the distinct effects of perceived value on perceived intention and intentional action in data reuse. With these insights, this study develops practical strategies to optimize the design of metadata and retrieval functions in data retrieval systems.

Self-archiving of Scholarly Publications for improved access to local content in Tanzania: A study of Open Access Institutional Repositories in Universities in Tanzania

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This study sought to investigate how the self-archiving of scholarly publications in Open Access Institutional Repositories can be strengthened for improved access to local content. Specifically, the study sought to investigate factors that influence self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs, examine the implementation of OAIRs policies on self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs and determine challenges that hinder self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs. The population of the study consisted of 2894 faculty members and 413 sample size, obtained through a systematic random sampling technique. Data were collected using questionnaires and interviews with eight key informants. Key findings indicated that there are factors that influenced self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs among faculty members such motivating factors, availability of technical support, supervisors/peers/colleagues and supporting services. Moreover, the study found challenges that hindered self-archiving as low level of awareness and inadequate advocacy for a self-archiving, lack of personal benefit such as rewards and promotions, fear of the plagiarism, lack of enough facilities like ICT and internet connectivity. The study also found that there was a need to implement OAIR policies in self-archiving of scholarly publications in the OAIRs. In order to strengthen self-archiving, the study recommends providing support services, technical supports, encouraging supervisors/peers/colleagues, creating awareness, providing personal benefits, provide education and give more time, effort and implement OAIR policies to enhance the process of self-archiving scholarly publications in OAIRs. The findings of this study shall contribute new knowledge to the existing research outputs that have been conducted in this field.

Self-archiving of Scholarly Publications for improved access to local content in Tanzania: A study of Open Access Institutional Repositories in Universities in Tanzania

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This study sought to investigate how the self-archiving of scholarly publications in Open Access Institutional Repositories can be strengthened for improved access to local content. Specifically, the study sought to investigate factors that influence self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs, examine the implementation of OAIRs policies on self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs and determine challenges that hinder self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs. The population of the study consisted of 2894 faculty members and 413 sample size, obtained through a systematic random sampling technique. Data were collected using questionnaires and interviews with eight key informants. Key findings indicated that there are factors that influenced self-archiving of scholarly publications in OAIRs among faculty members such motivating factors, availability of technical support, supervisors/peers/colleagues and supporting services. Moreover, the study found challenges that hindered self-archiving as low level of awareness and inadequate advocacy for a self-archiving, lack of personal benefit such as rewards and promotions, fear of the plagiarism, lack of enough facilities like ICT and internet connectivity. The study also found that there was a need to implement OAIR policies in self-archiving of scholarly publications in the OAIRs. In order to strengthen self-archiving, the study recommends providing support services, technical supports, encouraging supervisors/peers/colleagues, creating awareness, providing personal benefits, provide education and give more time, effort and implement OAIR policies to enhance the process of self-archiving scholarly publications in OAIRs. The findings of this study shall contribute new knowledge to the existing research outputs that have been conducted in this field.

Quality management: A model for optimizing information provision in Romanian special research libraries

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
A study regarding the relevance of special libraries and the quality of access to information in Romania was conducted. The general objective was to develop a contribution regarding the quality management in libraries using the grounded theory method. The model obtained for optimizing the quality of access to information implies the existence of material resources, but also innovations, the involvement of human resources through creativity and promotion, leading to increased academic visibility, increased satisfaction of long-term active users, attraction of new users both in the physical space and in the digital environment and, finally, increased relevance of the library in question within the tutelary research institute. The value of the study lies in the series of solutions for optimizing the access to scientific information in research libraries in the digital age, and the correlations between the results obtained based on the grounded theory and the three generic models of library quality management, LibQual+, Balanced Scorecard, and ISO 9001, by adapting them to the context of the special research libraries in Romania.