Assessment of information literacy skills and information-seeking behavior of medical students in the age of technology: a study of Pakistan

Information literacy development and competencies of high school students in Accra

Purpose

Information literacy (IL) is clearly important for academic performance, as evidenced by literature. It could be defined as a set of abilities, attitudes and experiences that enable people to recognize when they need information to solve an issue. The importance of investigating students’ IL competencies cannot be overstated. This study therefore aims to look into the IL development and competencies of high school students in Accra, as there appears to be a dearth of systematic study on this in Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

To investigate this phenomenon, the study used a survey research design with a mixed-methods approach and a post-positivist research paradigm. A total of 454 high school students, 3 librarians and 3 heads of ICT departments from three senior high schools in Accra participated in this study. This study used two methods: an audit of the IL programmes and practices available at the selected schools as well as IL literacy assessment through the use of a standardized test instrument. The data collection tools used were a semi-structured interview schedule and a questionnaire.

Findings

This study found that high school students in Accra had low IL competencies. Again, the findings of this study revealed that inadequate infrastructure and lack of formalized IL instructions in schools hindered the IL development of students.

Originality/value

The author considers the study original both in conceptualization and design. The main question being interrogated stems from identified gaps in the literature and this study intends to fill these knowledge gaps. This study’s originality also stems from the fact that there is a paucity of information on the subject of study in the context of Ghana. This study recommends the need to integrate IL in the school curriculum to ensure effective and efficient IL instructions in high schools.

Information literacy instruction in university libraries of Islamabad, Pakistan: a study of librarians’ perceptions, practices, barriers, and strategies

Purpose

This paper aims to measure the perceptions of librarians about information literacy (IL) instruction, their current IL practices and the problems they face while offering IL instructional programs in public and private sector university libraries in Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative research design was adopted, and a survey was carried out for this study to collect the data through an online questionnaire for the university librarians. All librarians (a total of 120) were approached to collect the data, of whom 92 (76.6%) responded to the survey.

Findings

The findings reveal that the librarians working in the university libraries of Islamabad are aware of the significance of IL instruction to fulfil the information needs of their library users. A majority of the librarians indicated having adequate skills to offer IL instruction. Moreover, the majority of the librarians are offering IL instruction to users at their respective universities. However, some of the barriers affecting IL instruction programs were also reported including the absence of IL instruction courses in the library and information science (LIS) curriculum, a shortage of trained library professional staff to provide IL instruction, a lack of commitment among librarians for IL instruction, a lack of training opportunities for librarians and a lack of interest from library users. These obstacles have a negative effect on IL instruction in the university libraries of Islamabad. Therefore, this study suggests that librarians are needed to take several necessary steps to overcome these obstacles to achieve the best results in IL instruction programs.

Originality/value

This study presents a picture of the status of IL skills, current practices and barriers to offering IL instruction in the university libraries of Islamabad. This research bridges the gap in the existing literature and will help to create awareness about the importance of IL skills among LIS professionals in Pakistan. Moreover, the findings of this study will help encourage librarians for the enhancement of IL instruction services in university libraries of Islamabad in particular and Pakistan in general.

Why do users continually seek knowledge in online Q&A communities? An empirical investigation

Purpose

Online Q&A communities have been widely highlighted as an important knowledge exchange market. Although motivations for users’ initial knowledge-seeking behavior have been widely investigated, the factors that affect online Q&A users’ continued knowledge-seeking behavior are still vague. This study aims to investigate the factors that affect users continuously seeking knowledge from online social Q&A communities.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on social information processing theory, social capital theory, social exchange theory and social cognitive theory, this study used a negative binomial regression model to explore what would affect people’s continued knowledge-seeking behavior. Empirical data was collected from a popular Chinese online social Q&A community.

Findings

The results indicate that while previous knowledge sharing behavior, peer responses for previous seeking behavior, identity-based trust have a positive impact on knowledge-seeking behaviors, social exposure has a negative impact. In addition, self-presentation negatively moderates the relationship between social exposure and knowledge-seeking behavior.

Originality/value

This study contributed to the theoretical basis for knowledge-seeking behavior in online Q&A communities. The research findings can be used to derive guidelines for the development and operation of online social Q&A communities.