ABSTRACT
The main purpose of this study was to identify the attitude of
librarians in polytechnic libraries in Northern States of Nigeria towards
information and communication technologies as well as factors that predicts
such attitudes. Survey research method was used for the study. The questionnaire
and observation were used in collecting data relevant to the study. Four
research questions and three hypotheses were formulated for the study. Findings
showed that:
A.
The
librarians expressed positive attitude towards information technology.
B.
Only one
variable; academic qualification of polytechnic librarian, out of the three
variables measured was discovered to be related to the attitude of the
polytechnic librarians towards information communication technology.
C.
It is
however surprising to note that despite the strong positive attitude registered
by the librarians, only limited information communication technology seemed to
be available at the polytechnic libraries even as such used for library
services.
D.
One out of
the six polytechnic libraries used for the study gave the high positive
interest of the librarians towards information communication technology, does
not have a single computer technology as at March 2007.
Such a slow rate of acquisition and use of
information communication technology in polytechnic libraries is not without
problems. Some of the identified barriers include: financial impecuniosities,
lack of adequate library legislation, un-proactive stance of polytechnic
librarians, shortage of qualified librarians just to mention a few. Some recommendations
were however preferred to aim at addressing the problems.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
Certificate
Dedication
Acknowledgment
List of Content
Abstract
List of Tables
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 Background and Description of the Study
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Statement of the Problem
1.3 Research Questions
1.4 Hypothesis
1.5 Objectives of the Study
1.6 Significance of the Study
1.7 Scope and Limitation of the Study
1.8 Operational Definition of Terms
References
CHAPTER TWO
Review of Related Literature
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Concept and Development of Information Communication Technologies in Libraries
2.2 The Types, Importance of Information Communication Technologies in Libraries
2.3 Application of Information Communication Technologies in Nigeria
2.4 Attitude of Librarians Toward Information Communication Technologies
2.5 Summary of Review
References
CHAPTER THREE
Methodology
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Research Technique Employed
3.2 The Research Population
3.3 Sample Size and Sampling Procedure
3.4 Instrumentation
3.5 Administration of Research Instrument
3.6 Data Analysis Techniques
References
CHAPTER FOUR
4.0 Data Analysis and Interpretation of Findings
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Responses Rate
4.3 Descriptive Analysis of Data/Availability of Information Communication Technology and Degree of Exposure to Information Communication Technology
4.4 The Librarian’s Perception about Information Communication Technology
4.5 Analysis of Variables that can affect the Attitude of Librarians towards Information Communication Technology
4.6 Steps on Improving the Librarians Attitude Towards Information Communication Technology
4.7 Testing the Hypothesis Inferential Statistics
4.8 Discussion of Findings
CHAPTER FIVE
5.0 Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Summary of Findings
5.2 Conclusion
5.3 Recommendations
5.4 Suggestion for Further Study
Appendix I
Appendix II
Bibliography
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4.0 Data Analysis and Interpretation of Findings
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Responses Rate
4.3 Descriptive Analysis of Data/Availability of Information Communication Technology and Degree of Exposure to Information Communication Technology
4.4 The Librarian’s Perception about Information Communication Technology
4.5 Analysis of Variables that can affect the Attitude of Librarians towards Information Communication Technology
4.6 Steps on Improving the Librarians Attitude Towards Information Communication Technology
4.7 Testing the Hypothesis Inferential Statistics
4.8 Discussion of Findings
CHAPTER FIVE
5.0 Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Summary of Findings
5.2 Conclusion
5.3 Recommendations
5.4 Suggestion for Further Study
Appendix I
Appendix II
Bibliography
CHAPTER
ONE
BACKGROUND
AND DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY
1.1 Introduction
This
thesis is on the attitude of librarians towards information communication technology in polytechnic
libraries. Polytechnic exist for the purpose of education, research and
learning. Polytechnics are academic institutions established with the aim of
providing theoretical and practical knowledge, which are invaluable for the
training of personnel required for the technological development of the nation.
Education in any academic institution cannot be optimally achieved without
libraries a integral parts of the institutions. The tremendous growth of the
human knowledge, matched with the corresponding increase in books, journals,
reports, thesis, to mention a few, resulted in information explosion. This
phenomenon has brought about the problem of how to select, organize and handle
information sources in libraries vis-Ã -vis polytechnic libraries.
Today,
the wind of change is blowing to every direction, as we are witnessing
information explosion, so also is technology changing to suit every situation.
Daniel (2002) cited by Abubakar1 observed that “the siren of
information communication technology is being heard loud and clear in every
sphere of human endeavour”. The demands placed on polytechnic libraries by it
patrons to provide adequate and current materials for teaching, research and
learning calls for alternative approach to manual process of rendering
services.
Libraries
attached to polytechnics fall into the category of those libraries refereed to
as academic libraries. The importance of academic libraries to its parent
institutions cannot be overemphasized. “They are heartbeat of any institution
of higher learning” Daniel2. Academic libraries exist in higher
institutions for providing educative, informative, recreational and research
assistance to the tertiary institutions community. Ifidon and Nkoli3
stated that the functions of academic libraries include:
a.
Provision
of materials for undergraduate instruction, term papers and projects as well as
for supplementary reading.
b.
Provision
of materials in support of faculty external and collaborating research.
c.
Provision
of materials in support of postgraduate research.
d.
Provision
of expensive standards works especially in the professional disciplines.
e.
Provision
of materials for self-development.
f.
Provision
of specialized information on the region within which the institution is
situated.
g.
Co-operation with other academic library with
a view to developing a network of academic library resources that is at the
disposal of all scholars.
In other for the academic libraries to perform
the above functions effectively, the use of information communication
technology was clearly inevitable. Madu and Adeniran4 defined
information communication technology as “the coming together of computing and
telecommunication for the purpose of information handling”. The researcher
observed in this study that information communication technologies refer to equipment such as,
compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM), international networks (internet),
micro-computers and all its peripherals, like scanners, printers to mention
few. Thus, information communication technolgies in libraries consist of all electronic
infrastructure and facilities employed by libraries to improve and provide
efficient services. Madu5 stated, “The first libraries that
experimented the use of information communication technologies in Nigeria were
the universities and research libraries. This he observed has virtually placed
those libraries ahead of other libraries in the acquisition and use of
information communication technologies”. The application and use of information
communication technologies in information delivery in Nigeria polytechnic
libraries is still at the elementary stage, when compared alongside other
academic libraries such as university libraries.
The
usefulness of attitude research in the field of social psychology cannot be
overemphasised. Such dominant status of attitude has made psychologist to
equate it with social psychology. Accordingly, Kelman6 stated that
“attitudes are a central concept and I regard the study of attitude as the
legitimate pursuit in its own right and as a useful component of multi method research
strategy”.
It
is pertinent for a study such as this on the attitudes of librarian towards
information communication technology to be embarked on, as it will reveal the
librarians’ attitude towards the use of information communication technology in
polytechnic libraries in northern Nigeria. Many variables were found in
literatures to correlate with attitudes. However, the ones examined in this
study were age, gender, and academic qualifications of the librarians.
1.2
Statement of the Problem
The
demand placed on librarians to provide current information resources to users’
calls for an alternative approach to manual process of rendering library
services in this information explosion age. The application of information
communication technology to institutional library operations would go a long
way in improving information delivery to patrons. This is imperative as the
successive improvement on the manual process of information delivery have not
yielded the desired result even with all the importance attached to polytechnic
education in Nigeria vis-Ã -vis information communication technologies in
libraries. The researcher observed that not much have been done to alleviate
the information acquisition and dissemination problems of polytechnic libraries,
as most polytechnic libraries still rely on the manual methods of information
service delivery. This is so as very little application of information
communication technologies have taken place. In line with the above statement,
Nwosu7 stated that:
The number of polytechnic libraries that
have acquired any form of information communication technology for use could be
counted on ones fingertip; as such, most polytechnic libraries are standing
edifices with nothing to show for their being there in this era of information
explosion.
Essentially, the success or failure in the use of information
communication technologies in any library often depends to some extent, upon
the attitudes of the librarians in the library. Adomi8 observed,
If a librarian has a negative attitude
towards information technology in his library, he is unlikely to be friendly or
disposed to the idea. The reverse is the case when the librarian has a positive
attitude towards information communication technologies in his library.
Negative attitudes of librarians
towards the use of information communication technology in libraries could
hinder their introduction in the libraries. There is need to understand the
disposition of polytechnic librarians towards information communication
technology. In line with the above, studies on attitudes of university
librarians by Uwaifo9 revealed “that university librarians have
positive attitude towards ICTs”. This
the researcher observed may been the
contributing factor to the acquisition and use of ICTs in university libraries.
1.3
Research Questions
This
study was embarked to answer these research questions:
1.
What types
of information communication technology are available in the polytechnic
libraries
2.
What are
the attitudes of librarians in the polytechnic libraries toward information
communication technologies?
3.
what steps
can be taken to improve on the attitude of polytechnic librarians in respect of
information communication technologies?
1.4 Hypotheses
Hypotheses were
formulated for the study they are:
1.
There is
no significant relationship between the ages of polytechnic libraries and their
attitude towards information communication technology.
2.
there is
no significant relationships between the gender of polytechnic librarians and
their attitude towards information communication technology.
3.
there is
no significant relationship between the academic qualifications of polytechnic
librarians and their attitude towards information communication technology.
1.5
Objectives
of the study
The objectives of the study are to:
1.
identify
the information communication technologies available in the polytechnic
libraries
2.
identify
the attitude of librarians towards information communication technologies in
the polytechnic libraries.
3.
ascertain
whether age, gender and academic qualifications have influence on polytechnic
librarians attitude towards information communication technology
1.6
Significance of the Study
The
research is aware of the importance of information communication technologies
in modern library practice. This study would serve as a source of reference for
studies in the area of information and communication technology, attitudinal
studies and polytechnic education in Nigeria; for libraries of polytechnic
libraries, students of library schools and researchers who have interest in
this field of study. The research findings could also reveal the exact
attitudes of polytechnic librarians towards information communication
technology. The findings of this study would expose the variables that affect
librarian’s attitudes towards information technology and show the necessary
steps that could be taken to motivate librarians towards information and
communication technologies in Nigerian libraries.
It
is hoped that the governments and management of polytechnic institutions
vis-Ã -vis libraries will be well informed on the attributes and usefulness of
information communication technologies to the entire academic environment when
applied to library functions and services.
1.7 Scope
and Limitation
The
study was concerned with the attitudes of professional librarians in
polytechnics towards information communication technologies; it was aimed at
identifying the variables that determine such attitudes, hence the study
covered only six polytechnic libraries in Northern States of Nigeria, after
which generalization of findings was however made to include the entire
Polytechnic libraries in Northern Nigeria. Interestingly, incessant strike
action embarked upon by Nigeria polytechnics was inimical to the research
process. In addition, inaccurate information on actual number of respondents
(Professional Librarians) in some of the selected sampled population such as
polytechnic libraries acted as hindrances to the study as this was against the
number of expected respondents got before the commencement of the study. This
is so as it was discovered in polytechnic libraries visited, there exist
limited number of professional librarians. However, the research study was
limited to professional librarians of polytechnic libraries in Northern states
of Nigeria.
1.8 Operational
Definition of Basic Terms
The following terms are defined as used in the
study: -
Attitude: - This refers to Librarians’
individual frame of minds affecting their thought or behaviour most times
exhibited outwardly towards the ICT.
Information communication technology: These refers to the combination of
computing and telecommunication facilities used for the selection, acquisition,
manipulation, storage and transfer of information such as computers,
international network, micro opaque, slides, reprographic machines,
transparencies, etc.
Librarian: This refers to a person with HND, B.Sc and higher
qualifications in library and information science, who works with information
resources in the library.
Polytechnic Library: This was used throughout the study to mean all
libraries attached to the polytechnic as an institution.
REFERENCES
1.
M.B.
Abubakar, “Availability and age of information technology for education and
training in Nigeria library school” An MLS Thesis, Bayero University, Kano.
2002.
2.
O.J.
Daniel, Virtual Library for Nigerian Librareis” Journal of Nigerian Library
Association Vol. 36. No. 2, 2002, pp. 55.
3.
S.E.
Ifidon and G.N. Nkoli, 40 years of academic and research library services in
Nigerian, Past, present and future. In Nigeria library association. 40th
Annual national conference and AGM. A compendium of papers presented June 16th
– 21st, 2002, Pp. 22.
4.
E.C. Madu,
and T.N. Adeniran, “Information Technology”. Uses and preservation of resources
in Libraries and information centres, Oya: Odumatt Press 2000.
5.
E.C. Madu,
“Automation and Service Provision in Libraires and Information centres in
developing countries”. Technology for information management and services:
Modern Libraries and information centres: Madu, E.C. (ed) Ibadan, Evi-Coleiman
Publications, 2004, Pp. 4.
6.
H.C
Kelman, “Attitudes are alive and well gainfully employed in sphere of action”
American Psychologists (Vol. 29). 1974, P. 310.
7.
Nwonsu
Obiora, Application of Information and communication Technology in Polytechnic/
Monotechnic Libraries in 21st Centuries. A paper presented at the
National Workshop by NBTE, Kaduna for polytechnic and monotechnic libraries in
Nigeria 16th – 17th November, Kaduna 2000.
8.
E. E.
Adomi, “Attitude of Staff towards Library Exercise: Delta State University
Library, Abraka” Nigerian Libraries: 2002, (36:2): 27
9.
S.O.
Uwaifo, Attitude of Nigeria University Librarians towards the application of
information technology in university libraries. MLS Thesis, Bayero University,
Kano 1992 pp 23.
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