The Multidimensional Evolution of Literacy and Its Social Role: An Empirical Study Through Network Analysis

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to empirically investigate the multidimensional transformation of literacy as a core competency adapting to the digital environment in contemporary society and to propose directions for improving literacy policies and educational programs. Methodology: Using social big data collected from Naver and Daum between 2021 and 2024, the study employed text mining, network analysis, CONCOR analysis, QAP regression, and topic modeling. Key keywords were identified through word frequency and TF-IDF analysis, while N-gram analysis and network visualization were used to examine the relationships between major topics. Findings: The analysis revealed that digital literacy, media literacy, and data literacy emerged as core themes, and their networks demonstrated statistically significant structural patterns. QAP regression analysis confirmed that the literacy-related network exhibited clear patterns compared to a random network, and CONCOR analysis indicated that major topics were closely interconnected. Implication: This study highlights the importance of literacy as a critical competency for enhancing information utilization and critical thinking in the digital era. It suggests a need for integrated approaches in policy formulation and educational program development. Furthermore, it emphasizes the significance of providing tailored literacy education in collaboration with local communities and implementing policy support to reduce information inequality

Social Media and Development in a Hybrid Intentional Community in Rural Hong Kong

I explore how social media applications are applied by members of a hybrid, intentional eco-community in rural Hong Kong. I draw on both my own participant observations over the year I spent in the community and interview data with ten of the community’s members to construct an ethnographic account of social media use in the community. Social media apps are ubiquitous, yet their effects are not entirely positive. Although the technological affordances enable both the community and its members to grow, a darker side is also revealed, where increasing levels of individualism interfere with the community-level ethos and potentially threaten the community’s long-term survival. The practical and theoretical contributions of the study are discussed

Introducing the Human Library Concept as a Tool to Mitigate Work and Household Stress among Working Mothers at UENR

Most women experience some form of stress at some point in their lives. However, these stress levels are exacerbated when the woman becomes both a mother and a career woman. The study explored how the human library concept can be used as a tool to mitigate work and household stress among working mothers at the University of Energy and Natural Resources. The study adopted the qualitative research approach. 15 out of 92 mothers of the Senior Staff of Universities of Ghana (SSAUoG) at UENR were purposively sampled. The findings revealed that majority of the working mothers feel stressed in combining work roles and domestic roles. To help mitigate the stress levels, the mothers saw a solution in interacting with each other and sharing their knowledge and experiences which is what the human library stands for. Hence, employers who expect mothers to deliver excellently at their assigned duties must employ the human library concept as a tool to mitigate stress among its working mothers

Multilingual Knowledge Graphs: Challenges and Opportunities

Multilingual Knowledge Graphs (MKGs) have emerged as a crucial component in various natural language processing tasks, enabling efficient representation and utilization of structured knowledge across multiple languages. One can get data, information, and knowledge from various sectors, like libraries, archives, institutional repositories, etc. Variable quality of metadata, multilingualism, and semantic diversity make it a challenge to create a digital library and multilingual search facility. To accept these challenges, there is a need to design a framework to integrate various structured and unstructured data sources for integration, unification, and sharing databases. These are controlled using linked data and semantic web approaches. In future, multilingual knowledge graph overcomes all the linguistic nuances, technical barriers like semantic interoperability, data harmonization etc and enhance cooperation and collaboration throughout the world. Through a comprehensive analysis of the current state-of-the-art techniques and ongoing research efforts, this paper aims to offer insights into the future directions and potential advancements in the field of Multilingual Knowledge Graphs. This paper deals with a multilingual knowledge graph and how to build up a multilingual knowledge graph. It also focuses on the various challenges and opportunities for designing multilingual knowledge graphs

Computer Literacy Skills as a Determinant of Electronic Reference Sources Utilization among Selected Secondary School Students in Ado-Odo Ota Local Government, Ogun State, Nigeria

The study investigated computer literacy skills as a determinant of electronic reference sources utilization among selected secondary school students in Ado-Odo Ota Local Government, Ogun State, Nigeria. Four specific objectives with conforming research questions guided the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprises of SSS3 students of the three selected Community Secondary Schools in Ado Odo Ota. A sample size of 150 was used for the study. The instrument for data collection was a self-developed structured questionnaire. Data collected was analyzed using frequency and percentages. Findings of the study revealed that majority of secondary school students were not aware of the availability of electronic reference sources. It also revealed that the level of their computer literacy skills was below average. Majority of them have never used computer before and the few of them that have used computer before used it in their homes, their friend’s homes or in the cyber café. It was found that lack of formal training on the use of electronic reference sources, lack of access to computer, lack of awareness of availability of electronic reference sources, lack of funds for internet subscriptions, over dependency on printed reference sources and lack of motivation to use electronic reference sources were the major hindrances to the use of electronic reference sources among secondary school students. It was recommended that the school librarians and teachers should play a role in creating awareness among secondary school students about the availability of online/ electronic reference sources among others

Impact of Knowledge Creation and Sharing on Knowledge Use Among Librarians in Federal Universities in Nigeria

This paper aims to determine the impact of knowledge creation and sharing on use by librarians in federal universities in Nigeria. The study adopted the survey method of the correlation type, where 518 librarians were surveyed through a close-ended questionnaire, descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment Correlation coefficient and multiple regression were used to test the hypotheses. Findings indicate that significant relationships exist between knowledge creation and knowledge sharing (r=0.52), knowledge sharing and knowledge use (r=0.63) and knowledge creation and knowledge use (r=0.52), respectively. Knowledge created and shared by the librarians is used for better work performance. The paper adds value to the existing body of knowledge by proposing the need to understand the importance of knowledge creation and sharing as facilitators of knowledge use by librarians. This will, in turn, enhance service delivery to library patrons, thereby improving library patronage. This paper is limited to knowledge creation and sharing and its impact on knowledge use. Types of knowledge created and channels through which knowledge is shared are outside the focus of this article

Influence of Job Motivation on Effective Job Performance of Library Personnel in Universities

This study investigated the influence of job motivation on job performance of library personnel in university libraries in Oyo State, Nigeria. Descriptive survey research design type was used for the study. The population of the study consisted of 164 library personnel in university libraries in Oyo State. An adapted questionnaire was used as the instrument for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. PPMC were used for hypotheses testing at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that the level of job performance of library personnel among university libraries in Oyo State was high ( =2.85) and that the level of job motivation (promotion, compensation, conducive work environment) of library personnel among the sampled universities was also high ( =2.77). More so, the findings of the hypothesis disclosed that there is a significant and positive relationship between job motivation (p= 0.029 < 0.05) and job performance of library personnel among universities in Oyo State. It was recommended that library leadership should make provision for motivational ingredients that can serve as an encouragement for the library personnel to enhance the level of their job performance

Awareness as Correlate of Undergraduate Students’ Utilisation of Library Software in Universities in South-West, Nigeria

This study investigated the awareness and utilisation of library software by undergraduate students in universities in South-west Nigeria. The descriptive research design of the ex post facto was adopted using a sample of 1,527 selected from the total population of 239,048 undergraduate students in the universities. A questionnaire was used to collect the data. The finding of the study revealed that the extent of utilisation of library software by undergraduate students was high. Also, the majority of undergraduate students utilised library software in the university libraries between two to three times a week. Similarly, the findings show that awareness had an influence on the utilisation of library software by undergraduate students in the universities (r = 0.563, N = 1333, P < 0.05). The study concluded that awareness influenced the utilisation of library software by undergraduate students in universities. The study, therefore, recommends that the importance of the awareness of library software should be emphasized in the library to enhance its utilisation by the students in the university libraries

A Survey of Open Access Institutional Repositories in Nigerian University Libraries: The Current State

The purpose of the study is to investigate the development of institutional repositories in university libraries in Nigeria. The study adopted a survey research design. Online questionnaire, IRs investigation, and interview methods were used to collect data from the 21 university libraries that have developed IRs in Nigeria. The study revealed that only few universities have successfully developed open access IRs to preserve and manage their intellectual outputs emanating from their universities. Contents such as journal articles, theses/dissertations, and conference / workshop papers were found to be the most popular contents that are hosted in the IRs. The interview revealed that although few respondents mentioned having IR policy statements in areas such as access policy, submission policy, preservation policy, content policy and copyright policy, the majority mentioned not having any defined policy in their IR. Also in the interview, inadequate fund, challenge of collecting contents for the IR, shortage of skilled ICT personnel, and inadequate facilities were the most mentioned challenges encountered in the development of IRs in Nigeria. Findings from this study will inform University Librarians, university management and policy makers on the need to provide the necessary infrastructure and formulate policies for smooth development of institutional repositories to make research visible globally. The results will therefore provide important data and insight into the development of institutional repositories in university libraries in the context of developing countries

Unleashing the Power of Digitization: National Mission for Manuscript’s Analysis and Special Efforts in Enhancing Manuscript Usability and Preserving Cultural Heritage in Uttar Pradesh

The present study focuses on the activities and efforts of the National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM) in the Uttar Pradesh region, which is known for its vast area, population, and rich cultural heritage. The aim is to examine the digitization work carried out by the NMM in this area, as digitization plays a crucial role in preserving our country’s rich ancient heritage. The importance of safeguarding cultural heritage is universally acknowledged, and digitization serves as a vital tool in this endeavour. Through digitization, we can protect and preserve our heritage for future generations. The government has implemented several commendable initiatives for manuscript digitization, and the NMM stands as a prominent organization dedicated to the conservation of cultural heritage. The NMM possesses a diverse range of cultural heritage resources, including photographic slides, photographs, digital images, photo-negatives, motion pictures, audio spools, microfiche, LP records, endangered manuscripts, audio and videotapes, digital images, microfilms, digital audio and video files, and more. The mission has undertaken extensive digitization efforts to conserve and provide access to a significant portion of its collection. This study is unique as it explores the digital conservation and digitization practices of a premier institute working in the field of art and cultural heritage in Uttar Pradesh. With its extensive network of institutions, the mission aims to cover all manuscripts, digitize them, and consolidate them on a common platform for easy access and utilization