INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES AND LIBRARY 2.0 AS A GATEWAY TO INFORMATION ACCESS AND KNOWLEDGE SHARING

Abstract

This study looks at the influence of social networking sites and library 2.0 as a gateway to information access and knowledge sharing in Prof. Festus AghagboNwako Library, NnamdiAzikwe University, Awka. The study sought to determine the various social networking sites available at PFAN library website, the extent of use of library 2.0 tools in PFAN to provide information access and knowledge sharing and the level of influence of social networking and library 2.0, in accessing library services in PFAN library. Five questions guided the study and descriptive survey were used as the research design. Also, all the 23 professional librarians in PFAN library were used as sample for the study. Data from each research question were collected and analyzed for easy interpretation. Statistically, simple mean method was used for data analysis. The study revealed that the available social networking sites in PFAN library website were Facebook, Instant Messaging, Twitter, Linkedin and blog. Also, the study showed that the extent of use of library 2.0 tools to provide information access in the library were very low. Findings from the study also revealed, that the level of influence of social networking sites and library 2.0 for accessing library services was very low and that the challenges to use of social networking sites and library 2.0 for information access and knowledge sharing were due to lack of ICT skills by librarians and cost of ICT equipment among others. Appropriate recommendations such as training of librarians in the use of ICT and social media and seeking of alternative means of funding by the libraries were made

TABLE OF CONTENT

Title page

Approval page

Dedication

Acknowledgment

Abstract

Table of content

CHAPETR ONE

1.0   INTRODUCTION 

1.1        Background of the study

1.2        Statement of problem

1.3        Objective of the study

1.4        Research Hypotheses

1.5        Significance of the study

1.6        Scope and limitation of the study

1.7       Definition of terms

1.8       Organization of the study

CHAPETR TWO

2.0   LITERATURE REVIEW

CHAPETR THREE

3.0        Research methodology

3.1    sources of data collection

3.3        Population of the study

3.4        Sampling and sampling distribution

3.5        Validation of research instrument

3.6        Method of data analysis

CHAPTER FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

4.1 Introductions

4.2 Data analysis

CHAPTER FIVE

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Summary

5.3 Conclusion

5.4 Recommendation

Appendix

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• Background of the study

Libraries are experiencing technology transformation. Right from the typewriter to cloud computing libraries have used technologies to improve service and visibility. These technology transformations have been reported, recorded and read by librarians to understand how to position ourselves in this ever-changing technology-driven society. Information society demands the strategic positioning of information in – content organization, information services, knowledge dissemination and archiving of resources. This demand has elevated the position of librarians from ‘information provider / facilitator’ to the ‘custodians of facts’. These demands have made it imperative for librarians to learn, implement and use the technology which is in force for effective and efficient service delivery. Libraries are among the early adopters of social media in order to connect with their patrons. Libraries will continue to be a community hub in this network world just as they were in the traditional environment. As Michael Stephens (2006) said ‘to remain viable, interesting and relevant, libraries should seek methods to get out into the community, engage users with services and conversations, and offer collaborative spaces both online and in beautiful physical buildings. But here’s the other side of the coin: Librarians should embrace the social tools as well on a professional and even personal level. It’s the logical first step to put us on the way to Library 2.0’. The advent of information and communication technologies and mobile devices have posed challenges for libraries as well as created new opportunities. One significant challenge is the low patronage being experienced in today‟s academic libraries. Library patronage is on the decline, mostly because users are exploiting alternative sources like the internet and mobile devices to meet their information needs. This change in information seeking behavior has foisted on libraries to explore new means of providing information and interacting with their users. It is no longer news that libraries are evolving to meet the needs of 21st century information seekers. The trend is that libraries are exploiting Web 2.0 technologies to re-establish connections with their users who have resorted to the internet. Like the proverbial mountain going to Mohammed, todays libraries are taking their services to millenial patrons who now „reside‟ on the net. To keep up with the demands of the 21st c academic environment, academic libraries are incorporating new concepts to provide the needed services and retain their relevance. Social networks (SN) are among the new concepts that libraries are engaging to interact with their patrons. Web 2.0 is the buzzword of all the conferences, seminars, discussion forms and literatures published on technology adoption in libraries during 2002 to 2012. Web 2.0 could be thought of as the set of everevolving tools that benefit online users (Stephens, 2006) and used by them to connect, communicate, collaborate, converse and create content. Further, Web 2.0 can be considered as the upgraded, improved, and modernized World Wide Web. It is a term used loosely to apply to everything from the explosion of social networking websites like MySpace and YouTube, to the rich, interactive software applications being served online, and even to the specific programming languages and technology tools that make the “new” web possible (Funk, 2009). The term ‘Web 2.0’ was coined by Darcy DiNucci (DiNucci, 1999) who said: “The Web we know now, which loads into a browser window in essentially static screenfuls, is only an embryo of the Web to come. The first glimmerings of Web 2.0 are beginning to appear, and we are just starting to see how that embryo might develop. The Web will be understood not as screenfuls of text and graphics but as a transport mechanism, the ether through which interactivity happens. It will  appear on your computer screen, on your TV set  your car dashboard  your cell phone  hand-held game machines maybe even your microwave oven” (Wikipedia, 2014). Tim O’Reilly and Dale Dougherty of O’Reilly Media popularized it by comparing the monotype web technologies (old) which they term as ‘Web 1.0’ with the dynamic and interactive web technologies. It was an attempt to describe the web technology in business models which demanded the interactive, dynamic, real-time and transparent The role librarians play in the development of citizenry cannot be over emphasized. From the pre-school age through the various stages of education which requires formal and informal knowledge acquisition, there is the need to call or liaise with librarians at one point or the other. By virtue of their training, librarian’s presence is felt as information resources are sourced, acquired, processed and made available for use. Before the turn of the twentieth century, information resources were predominantly in print format and librarians play the central role of sourcing, acquiring, processing and making the resources available for the present and intending users, all in print form. The advent of computer and communication technologies in the twentieth century has continued to vest the same responsibilities on librarians despite the changing packaging and delivery format from print to electronic. In spite of such development, librarians did not rest on their oars but have continued to enhance their capacity in order to address the required operations and services. New mode of library operations and services are made possible through automation and digital processes. To satisfy the yearning needs of the new set of information users (digital generation) who need information access and use to be interesting, and fun (Minocha, 2009), librarians began to transform staff competencies, services and access models (Casey & Savastinuk 2006). Recognizing the shift of information user’s attention to Internet and the Web as elaborated by Haythornthwaite (2005), librarians extended their operations and services to the web. The use of the web by librarians at this point was restricted by limited computer science and technology skills. This is because the website used for operations and services are static, thereby requiring the acquisition of Java and php competencies to use them. Advances in web development further unveiled a move from the static web or Web 1.0 (Barskey (2006), to a platform where users are opportune to interact with the web through the creation, deleting or remixing of content (McManus, 2009). As information providers, librarians were therefore, empowered to jettison the limitations of Web 1.0 to serve library practitioners better with the facilities provided by Web 2.0. The basic step to ensuring that librarians in Nigeria utilize these new innovations in web development is to identify their awareness and use of Web 2.0 or social media.

• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Librarians, in this digital age, are responsible for a wide variety of resources and services that expand far beyond the typical eight-hour work day. Igun (2010:18) opines that “librarians’ role in the global information environment is unique. His roles are critical for the necessary control of information resources in physical and virtual domains”. Notably, the advent of other sources of information like the internet, World Wide Web and even social media that has led to a new challenge for librarians to meet the rapidly changing information needs and expectations of the 21st century users. Librarians now have a challenge of making themselves more relevant in this digital age. Iwhiwhu, Ruteyan and Eghwubare (2010) note that the challenge of most librarians is to attract users to the library and to retain them. To deal with this challenge, librarians are reconsolidating, reshaping, re-designing and repackaging resources as a means of promoting their services and information. A potent means in which librarians and libraries can optimize for their work and services as well as maintain their relevance is through a medium like social media. In this 21st Century, where a paradigm shift in communicating library services to users is evident, a modern and contemporary tool would be needed to promote library and information resources services. Social media are one modern and contemporary new media for effective promotion of library and information services in the technological era. Which necessitated the need for the study influence of social networking sites and library 2.0 as a gateway to information access and knowledge sharing?

• OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main objective of the study is to ascertain the influence of social networking sites and library as a gateway to information access and knowledge sharing, to aid the completion of the study, the researcher intends to achieve the following specific objective;

2. To ascertain the influence of social networking site on library 2.0
3. To examine the relationship between social networking site and information access in digital library

• To examine the role of social networking site in information sharing in modern library

1. To examine the effect of social networking site on library efficiency
   • RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

The following research hypotheses were formulated to guide the completion of the study

H₀: social networking site does not have any effect on library efficiency

H₁: social networking site does have an effect on library efficiency

H₀: there is no significant relationship between social networking site and information access in digital library

H₂: there is a significant relationship between social networking site and information access in digital library

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will be of importance to students of different higher of learning as it would enlighten them on the benefit of social networking site in educational process. Finally, this study will also help to serve as literature (reference source) to the public, individuals and corporate bodies into what to carry out on further research on social network on academic adjustment of in school adolescent among Nigeria’s university students.

• Scope And Limitation Of The Study

The scope of the study covers the influence of social networking sites and library 2.0 as a gateway to information access and knowledge sharing. In the cause of the study, there were some factors which limited the scope of the study;

1. a) AVAILABILITY OF RESEARCH MATERIAL: The research material available to the researcher is insufficient, thereby limiting the study
2. b) TIME: The time frame allocated to the study does not enhance wider coverage as the researcher has to combine other academic activities and examinations with the study.
3. c) Organizational privacy: Limited Access to the selected auditing firm makes it difficult to get all the necessary and required information concerning the activities.

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS

INFLUENCE: The capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something, or the effect itself.

SOCIAL NETWORK: A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors, sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors.

ACADEMIC: Academic achievement or (academic) performance is the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has achieved their short or long-term educational goals.

Library
A library is a collection of sources of information and similar resources, made accessible to a defined community for reference or borrowing.

Library 2.0

Library 2.0 is a loosely defined model for a modernized form of library service that reflects a transition within the library world in the way that services are delivered to users. The focus is on user-centered change and participation in the creation of content and community

1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows

Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study

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