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Being where the users are

Being where the users are PurposeThe purpose of this research is to investigate the preparedness of academic libraries in Ghana for the use of social media in reference and user services.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research approach using interviews was used to solicit the views of Systems/reference librarians from six most highly ranked public and private universities (in Ghana) on their libraries’ preparedness for use of social media to provide reference and user services.FindingsThe findings of the study indicate that most of the university libraries lacked policy on the use of social media and that though librarians held the perception that social media was useful, they lacked the competence and motivation to use social media to make a remarkable difference in service delivery.Practical implicationsAcademic libraries in Ghana and elsewhere will find the results useful in formulating policies for the use of social media in libraries.Originality/valueThis qualitative approach to the study of social media deviates from the mostly quantitative studies in the literature and has brought out more revealing findings. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Library Review Emerald Publishing

Being where the users are

Ahenkorah-Marfo, Michael; Akussah, Harry
Library Review , Volume 65 (8/9): 15 – Nov 7, 2016
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References (26)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISSN
0024-2535
DOI
10.1108/LR-02-2016-0020
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to investigate the preparedness of academic libraries in Ghana for the use of social media in reference and user services.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research approach using interviews was used to solicit the views of Systems/reference librarians from six most highly ranked public and private universities (in Ghana) on their libraries’ preparedness for use of social media to provide reference and user services.FindingsThe findings of the study indicate that most of the university libraries lacked policy on the use of social media and that though librarians held the perception that social media was useful, they lacked the competence and motivation to use social media to make a remarkable difference in service delivery.Practical implicationsAcademic libraries in Ghana and elsewhere will find the results useful in formulating policies for the use of social media in libraries.Originality/valueThis qualitative approach to the study of social media deviates from the mostly quantitative studies in the literature and has brought out more revealing findings.

Journal

Library Review – Emerald Publishing

Published: Nov 7, 2016

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