TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose– This study investigates the behaviour of searchers of CD‐ROM databases in the Kenneth Dike Library of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. The aim of the study was to identify the behaviour of end‐users with different amounts of overall experience in searching electronic databases in order to identify the knowledge of their search systems and syntax, and its effect on their search results, for the purpose of improving user education.Design/methodology/approach– All end‐users who conducted searches during the period of the research were the subjects of the research. A well‐constructed questionnaire, including interviews and observations, were used to collect the requisite data. The variables included in this study are user variables, search process variables and search outcome variables. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.Findings– The results show that logical operators “AND” and “OR” are significantly used for searching by end‐users; that search results are dependent on search strategy employed by the user. The more sophisticated the search strategy, the greater the result in terms of number and relevance obtained by the searcher. The result also shows that there is no relationship between the level of education of users and quality of search strategy.Practical implications– The implication of the study is mainly the importance and necessity of training for end‐users in CD‐ROM literature search.Originality/value– The uniqueness of the study is based on the fact that certain strategic methods are required for a successful CD‐ROM literature search and that this does not depend on the level of education of users. This paper is therefore important and applicable to all end‐users who are interested in conducting CD‐ROM literature search.
VL  - 23
IS  - 3
SN  - 0264-0473
DO  - 10.1108/02640470510603769
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/02640470510603769
AU  - Okpala Angela E.
AU  - Igbeka Josephine U.
ED  - David Raitt
PY  - 2005
Y1  - 2005/01/01
TI  - Analysis of users' searches of CD‐ROM databases
T2  - The Electronic Library
PB  - Emerald Group Publishing Limited
SP  - 362
EP  - 368
Y2  - 2024/04/25
ER  -