Addressing online information resources’ access challenges: potentials of resource discovery tools’ application

This study was designed to assess the awareness and usage of a discovery tool known as LibHub among undergraduate students in their research projects’ undertakings. The study involved respondents who were randomly selected from purposively chosen four degree courses in the Faculty of Agriculture at the Sokoine University Agriculture in Tanzania. Copies of semi-structured questionnaire were distributed to 200 respondents for self-administration. Of the returned copies of the questionnaire, 158 (79%) were found complete and useful for further analysis. The findings of the study indicate that majority of respondents who knew and used LibHub were those who previously attended information literacy trainings at the University as compared to those who had never attended such trainings. Respondents who acknowledged to have used LibHub in their online information search endeavours cited ability to access information from various sources using a single authentication as the major advantage of this research tool. They also pointed out that a single search interface provided by LibHub saved time they spent in searching literature. However, respondents complained of limited number of computers at the University, few wireless points for internet access, and low internet speed as hindrances for effective utilisation of the LibHub in accessing online information resources. The study recommends more institutions to consider adoption of discovery tools in fulfilling their campaigns to foster the utilisation of online information resources

An analysis of open access scholarly communication Tanzanian public universities

The aim of this study was to investigate factors affecting the adoption of open access in research activities within Tanzanian public universities in order to device mechanisms of enhancing the use of this mode of scholarly communication. The study adopted the UTAUT model to formulate an open access research model comprising of six constructs and five moderators for guidance of this investigation. A triangulation approach for data gathering was adopted. In the first instance, a semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 398 respondents selected using the stratified random sampling from a population of 1088 university researchers from six public universities in Tanzania. The interview involving 63 policy makers and structured records review were also conducted to complement the questionnaire survey. The descriptive and binary logistic regression statistics of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) were used for data analysis. The study established that majority of the policy makers (90.5%) and researchers (72.1%) were aware of open access. Attitude, awareness, effort expectancy, and performance expectancy were established as the key determinants for researchers’ behavioural intention of open access usage while age, awareness, behavioural intention, facilitating conditions and social influence were found to significantly affect researchers’ actual usage of open access. It was concluded that researchers’ and policy makers’ general perceptions about open access were very positive signifying the acceptance of this mode of scholarly communication in the study area. Current poor research conditions and researchers’ low Internet self-efficacy such as inadequate information search and online publishing skills were cited as the main hindrances for researchers to use open access in scholarly communication. The study recommends institutionalisation of open access publishing in Tanzanian public universities and other similar research institutions so as to improve the dissemination of research output emanating from such institutions. Six areas for further research to establish more insights regarding the feasibility for open access development in the country are also recommended.Information ScienceD. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science

The suitability of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model in open access adoption studies

Technology acceptance models or theories are commonly used in studies aiming at predicting and explaining the individual behaviours towards the acceptance and usage of new technologies. This paper reports part of the findings from a doctoral research project which focused at analysing the acceptance and usage of open access within public universities in Tanzania. The study was guided by the Unified Theory of Technology Acceptance and Usage (UTAUT) model). The survey questionnaire targeted 544 respondents selected through stratified random sampling from a population of 1088 university researchers at six public universities in Tanzania. A response rate of 73 percent was achieved and the binary logistic regression statistics of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for data analysis. The study findings suggest support for the application of the UTAUT model in studying the adoption of open access in a research environment. Among the findings, attitude, awareness, effort expectancy and performance expectancy were established as the key determinants for the researchers’ behavioural intentions of open access usage. Similarly, age, awareness, behavioural intention, facilitating conditions and social influence were found to significantly affect researchers’ actual usage of open access. These factors should therefore be taken into account in the planning and implementation of open access projects. A further validation of the open access research model in similar research institutions in Tanzania and elsewhere is recommende

The adoption of open access scholarly communication in Tanzanian public universities: some Influencing factors

Open access is a means for free availability of scholarly content via the internet. It is an emerging opportunity for wider and unlimited access to scholarly literature. Scholarly communication, through open access journals and self-arching, are the two main approaches of open access publishing. However, this mode of scholarly communication is not widely utilised in developing countries such as Tanzania. This article discusses the factors that influence the adoption of open access for scholarly communication in Tanzanian public universities, based on a study conducted in 2008 using a survey questionnaire. A sample of 544 researchers, selected through stratified random sampling from a population of 1 088 researchers and 69 policymakers at six public universities in Tanzania, provided their views. It was evident from the findings that researchers’ internet usage skills and self-efficacy, social influence, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and the respondents’ general perceptions about open access were the positive factors likely to facilitate open access adoption. The current poor research conditions and researchers’ low internet self-efficacy (such as inadequate information search skills) were cited as the main hindrances for researchers to use open access outlets to access scholarly content. It is therefore recommended that university policies on scholarly communication should be revised to incorporate the use of open access publishing. Furthermore, universities should accelerate the establishment of institutional repositories, advocacy campaigns and training directed at researchers, policymakers, readers and information managers of scholarly content, and the improvement of internet speed through subscription to more bandwidth, so as to meet the demand from the scholarly communit

Provision of business information services to small-scale business enterprises in Meru County, Kenya

This study explored the business information services offered to small-scale business enterprises (SBEs) by public libraries in Meru County, Kenya. Public libraries are community information centres, hence well-placed to serve the small-scale business community. A quantitative approach and survey research design were adopted. Data were collected from 296 SBE traders and 20 staff members from three public libraries in Meru County using well-structured questionnaires and interviews. Quantitative data were analysed with the help of SPSS software while a thematic analysis was used on qualitative data. The provision of business information services to SBEs in public libraries was in a desolate state owing to inadequate business collections, the lack of sufficient information and communications technology (ICT) facilities, poor awareness of business information services, a poor reading culture, and weak collaborations of public libraries with stakeholders. There is an indispensable need to establish insightful and holistic business information services at public libraries and to institute measures that would foster their utilisation by SBEs. This can be achieved by elevating library facilities, enhancing outreach programmes, ensuring adequate funding, engaging knowledgeable business services librarians, embracing ICT in service delivery, and by having an appropriate policy framework.Information Scienc