User satisfaction with academic libraries services: Academic staff and students perspectives

Author(s):  
Pauline Adeniran
Infolib ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 36-39
Author(s):  
Victoria Levinskaya ◽  

Any contemporary academic library is created to meet the needs of the faculty member, researchers, and students in providing access to educational and scientific resources that go beyond traditional sour-ces of information such as books, textbooks, and magazines. Building a library collection is a scrupulous process involving not only librarians, but also the academic staff of the university. This process is highly dynamic, since it should ensure the quality of the provided educational services of the university, as well as contribute to the development of its scientific potential. This article reveals the main challenges facing academic libraries in creating an developing, recent and balanced library collection.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Nick Scullin

<p>Research Problem:  There is a contradiction surrounding ebooks in that they are becoming more and more common in academic libraries but evidence often suggests that users still prefer print books to ebooks. The purpose of the study is to examine how users at the University of Canterbury are using the Library’s ebooks and what their attitudes towards ebooks are. The study also looks at what role age, gender, academic status and college affiliation play in shaping attitudes towards and use of ebooks.   Methodology:  The study used an online survey to discover how ebooks were used and viewed by users at the University of Canterbury. The survey was largely quantitative but included several comments sections where users could give more qualitative answers. The population sampled was the academic staff and PhD students of the University of Canterbury.   Results:   The results show that the participants are mostly aware of and using ebooks. Opinion is still divided on ebooks with some user still preferring print and many users preferring access to both print and ebooks. Age, gender, academic status and college affiliation all have some effect on attitudes towards and use of ebooks.   Implications:  Academic libraries need to take note of the opinions their users have about ebooks so as to better meet their needs. Some of the problems around ebook use can be solved by increased user education but others are the result of restrictions placed on ebooks by publishers and vendors. Other problems are inherent to the ebook format and cannot be ignored. Academic libraries can best meet their users’ needs by providing both print and ebook collections were possible.</p>


2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 41-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Creaser ◽  
Susanne Cullen ◽  
Ruth Curtis ◽  
Nicola Darlington ◽  
Jane Maltby ◽  
...  

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to bring together the findings of two studies investigating the value of academic libraries to teaching and research staff in higher education institutions. The Working Together (WT) project was an international study, funded by SAGE Publishing, investigating the value of academic libraries for teaching and research staff in the USA, UK and Scandinavia. The Raising Academic Impact (RAI) project was an initiative of the University of Nottingham (UoN) aimed at increasing the impact of academic librarians in departments across the university by assessing perception and awareness of current library services and future needs of academic staff. Design/methodology/approach – The WT project was conducted during Spring 2012, comprising a series of eight case studies and an online survey exploring the case study experiences and findings within their wider regional and academic context. One was conducted at the UoN, and included the RAI project. The RAI project was originally a four-phase initiative conducted by academic librarians at the UoN. The first phase, which is reported in this paper, consisted of a survey of teaching and research staff, distributed in summer 2012, investigating awareness, uptake and value of existing services, as well as demand for new library services. Findings – Determining the value of academic libraries is a challenging task as very little evidence (beyond the anecdotal) is collected. Perceptions of library value vary greatly between what librarians think the value of their library is to academic staff and how academic staff actually value their library. Information literacy and study skills teaching are greatly valued by academic staff. Despite current efforts, research support is still limited, owing to a cultural barrier hampering greater collaboration between libraries and academic staff in this area. Communication and marketing are keys to increase the value of academic libraries to teaching and research staff. Originality/value – This paper presents the key findings from the two studies in parallel. It is anticipated that these discoveries will be of interest to the wider library community to help libraries develop services which are closely linked to the needs of teaching and academic staff.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 172-178
Author(s):  
Nawzat S. Ahmed

Websites developed for an organisation, especially a university, always need maintenance and improvements to increase user satisfaction and to provide an environment that provides up-to-date information and services in efficient ways. Unfortunately, academic websites are often designed depended on the structure and objectives of an organisation, rather than on whether students, lecturers, and administrative staff find the website usable. This leaves the website users’ needs and expectations unsatisfied. The University of Zakho (UoZ), a public university in the Kurdistan Regional Government, is developing its website to include most of the information required. However, the usability of this website still needs to be checked to know whether or not it satisfies users. This study employs a user-based method to get the rate of usability satisfaction from the perspective of students and academic staff, and it investigates whether the occupation has significant impacts on usability satisfaction. This method is achieved by using a Website Analysis and Measurement Inventory (WAMMI) questionnaire, which is including five factors: attractiveness, controllability, helpfulness, efficiency, and learnability. The study offers recommendations and suggestions to the UoZ web developers for improving the website during the maintenance period. Further, this study proposes ways to enhance the academic websites usability.


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