Faculty adoption and usage behaviour of open access scholarly communication in health science universities
Abstract
Purpose
The study seeks to investigate factors that affect the adoption and use of open access in Tanzanian health sciences universities.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a cross-sectional questionnaire survey, 415 faculty members were selected through a stratified random sampling from a population of 679 in all eight health sciences universities in Tanzania. The response rate was 71.1 per cent.
Findings
Based on the social exchange theory (SET), and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), the study developed a model suitable for assessing open access adoption and usage in academic institutions. The study found that facilitating conditions, extrinsic benefits (professional recognition), behavioural intention and individual characteristics (professional rank, technical skills and number of publications) predicted actual usage of open access. Other factors related to contextual factors (attitude, and open access culture), and extrinsic benefits (academic reward, accessibility and preservation) determined behavioural intention to use open access. Fear to violate publisher's copyright policies and effort expectancy however de-motivated faculty to adopt open access, while copyright concerns inhibited faculty's actual usage of open access.
Originality/value
This is the first comprehensive study focusing on the health sciences faculty's open access adoption and usage behaviour in Africa, and Tanzania in particular, and reveals findings that are useful for planning and implementing open access initiatives in other institutions with similar conditions.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the role of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) for funding the data collection and analysis for this study. The authors would also like to acknowledge the role of the Flemish Interuniversity Council – University Development Cooperation (VLIR-UOS) for funding the writing of the manuscript and international collaboration possibilities through the Short Research Stay Programme in Belgium.
Citation
Tandi Lwoga, E. and Questier, F. (2014), "Faculty adoption and usage behaviour of open access scholarly communication in health science universities", New Library World, Vol. 115 No. 3/4, pp. 116-139. https://doi.org/10.1108/NLW-01-2014-0006
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited