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Article
Publication date: 30 September 2014

Cathy Goodwin

The aim of this study is to compare print and e-book use for identical titles in the e-Duke Scholarly Collection (e-DSC) from 2011 to 2013 to determine format preference for a…

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to compare print and e-book use for identical titles in the e-Duke Scholarly Collection (e-DSC) from 2011 to 2013 to determine format preference for a discrete collection of titles in humanities and social sciences.

Design/methodology/approach

Use statistics for the e-DSC were downloaded from the e-book platform by title and call number to determine use by title and subject. Circulation statistics were culled from the library’s integrated library system for the same titles to compare e-book use to that of the same print title.

Findings

Although e-books had a high number of titles with use as a per cent of the collection, examination of substantive use shows a slight preference for print. While 73 per cent of the e-books garnered enough interest to click on them, only 12 per cent had substantive use.

Research limitations/implications

The e-DSC changed platforms in December 2013. The new platform does not require users to create an account to download e-book sections and digital rights management limitations have been removed. The same examination of collection use in 2.5 years on the new platform will provide an interesting comparison on the function of platform on e-book use.

Originality/value

The comparison of identical print and e-titles is less studied and includes the examination of “substantive use” in comparing print to e-book use.

Details

Collection Building, vol. 33 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0160-4953

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 29 March 2013

206

Abstract

Details

Library Hi Tech News, vol. 30 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0741-9058

Content available
Article
Publication date: 25 January 2008

502

Abstract

Details

Library Hi Tech News, vol. 25 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0741-9058

Article
Publication date: 12 July 2013

Julia Proctor

The purpose of this paper is to assert that libraries should actively seek and request alternatives to purchasing older ebook content rather than buying large ebook backlists…

1298

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assert that libraries should actively seek and request alternatives to purchasing older ebook content rather than buying large ebook backlists. Currently publishers are offering the equivalent of the “big deal” with monographs through ebook backlists, and this is not a model that can or should be sustained by libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper discusses experience the author gained through evaluating major ebook backlist promotional offers from 2012 and 2013, reviews library literature concerning ebook use, and reviews current purchase methods such as patron‐driven acquisition and firm ordering as alternatives to purchasing large ebook backlist packages.

Findings

There does not appear to be agreement in library literature about use and preference for ebooks, but there does appear to be a consensus that users expect the availability of ebook content. However, that expectation is not reason enough to purchase older content in large quantities in a format that still has problematic limitations. Patron‐driven acquisition and targeted firm ordering allow libraries to buy older content in ebook format with more information about the need for that content. Also, publishers should become more involved in offering alternatives to ebook backlist purchase models.

Originality/value

This discussion sheds light on the fact that while the ebook format may be new, the content and the purchase models often are not. Libraries need to advocate for effective purchase models now rather than becoming dependent on publishers to provide content libraries already own.

Details

New Library World, vol. 114 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4803

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 March 2021

Azra Rafique, Kanwal Ameen and Alia Arshad

The purpose of this study is to examine the evidence-based use patterns of Higher Education Commission (HEC) subscribed e-books databases by the academic community at institutions…

757

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the evidence-based use patterns of Higher Education Commission (HEC) subscribed e-books databases by the academic community at institutions of higher education in Pakistan. The study also investigates the differences in usage based on points of access, scholarly disciplines and gender of users.

Design/methodology/approach

A transaction log analysis (TLA) method was used to explore the use patterns of HEC e-books databases at the University of the Punjab, utilizing the SAWMILL analytical software and MS Excel.

Findings

The results of the study showed that the use of e-books was at a growing stage at the university. Male boarding students of the university were more active users of e-books as compared to their female counterparts. The Central Library of the University of the Punjab, the Department of Zoology and the Institute of Communication Studies were the most frequently used access points for the e-book users, and the Faculties of Sciences, Life Sciences, Economics and Management Sciences had the most active e-book readers. Furthermore, it was found that the HEC e-books databases were only being used during the four months of summer vacations at the university.

Research limitations/implications

The study provides only descriptive use frequencies rather than a deep log analysis of e-books usage.

Practical implications

This research provides important practical implications for examining the evidence-based use patterns of e-books databases' users at the higher educational level. The research suggests that HEC should maintain subscriptions of the most required e-books databases and that the information professionals should conduct orientations and information literacy programs to enhance the utilization of these subscribed databases among female boarder students and those faculties where they were being used less frequently.

Originality/value

The study is the second part of the first phase of a Ph.D. project. This is the first large scale study conducted in a developing country which reports the close to actual, approximate use patterns of e-books based on raw transaction logs of local cache servers at the higher academic level.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. 41 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 November 2020

Ahmad R. Pratama and Firman M. Firmansyah

The purpose of this study is to investigate if and how government intervention can nudge students to become ebook readers.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate if and how government intervention can nudge students to become ebook readers.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional survey research design was adopted for this study. A total of 1,144 students from four middle and high schools in urban and rural areas of Indonesia participated in this study. The results from statistical analyses were further discussed through the lens of the nudge theory.

Findings

This paper founds evidence that government intervention in the form of the Buku Sekolah Elektronik (BSE) policy that has been providing free electronic textbooks for more than a decade can help nudge students to become ebook readers. After controlling for student’s demographic information, this paper founds that their awareness of such a policy is significantly associated with a stronger preference toward ebooks while having no significant effect on their preferences toward printed book format. This paper also founds that mobile device adoption plays an important role where early adopters tend to prefer ebook format, whereas laggards are more associated with printed book format.

Originality/value

Many have studied the benefits of using ebooks in learning, but the literature also shows that most students still prefer reading printed books over ebooks. This is true not only in developing countries where problems with infrastructures can hamper the adoption of ebooks in general but also in developed countries where ebooks are much more prevalent, even among the general population. This paper showed how government interventions have the potency to help tip the scales and nudge students to become ebook readers.

Details

Digital Library Perspectives, vol. 37 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2059-5816

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 October 2020

Sirje Virkus and Emmanouel Garoufallou

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study exploring the emerging field of data science from the library and information science (LIS) perspective.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study exploring the emerging field of data science from the library and information science (LIS) perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

Content analysis of research publications on data science was made of papers published in the Web of Science database to identify the main themes discussed in the publications from the LIS perspective.

Findings

A content analysis of 80 publications is presented. The articles belonged to the six broad categories: data science education and training; knowledge and skills of the data professional; the role of libraries and librarians in the data science movement; tools, techniques and applications of data science; data science from the knowledge management perspective; and data science from the perspective of health sciences. The category of tools, techniques and applications of data science was most addressed by the authors, followed by data science from the perspective of health sciences, data science education and training and knowledge and skills of the data professional. However, several publications fell into several categories because these topics were closely related.

Research limitations/implications

Only publication recorded in the Web of Science database and with the term “data science” in the topic area were analyzed. Therefore, several relevant studies are not discussed in this paper that either were related to other keywords such as “e-science”, “e-research”, “data service”, “data curation”, “research data management” or “scientific data management” or were not present in the Web of Science database.

Originality/value

The paper provides the first exploration by content analysis of the field of data science from the perspective of the LIS.

Details

Data Technologies and Applications, vol. 54 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9288

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 November 2023

Pablo Gutiérrez-Rodríguez, Pedro Cuesta-Valiño, Rafael Ravina-Ripoll and Blanca García-Henche

The objective of this paper is to define a structural equation model (SEM) that examines how fashion consumers' expectations of consumer brand engagement (CBE) influence purchase…

Abstract

Purpose

The objective of this paper is to define a structural equation model (SEM) that examines how fashion consumers' expectations of consumer brand engagement (CBE) influence purchase intention, both directly and through consumer happiness as a mediator. For this purpose, the authors will develop the components of CBE and consumer happiness variables, whose relevance in the literature has increased considerably.

Design/methodology/approach

For this purpose, a cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out by means of a survey developed on the basis of the scales found in the literature, with a sample of 1,296 consumers representative of the Spanish population. The method used to test the hypotheses was partial least squares SEM.

Findings

The results of this research indicate that both CBE and consumer happiness positively influence the purchase intention of fashion brands. In turn, the importance of the dimensions of the antecedent variables can be established.

Research limitations/implications

The current research does not allow a longitudinal analysis of the consumption of fashion retailers. The findings of this scientific study provide a wealth of theoretical and practical information for managers to develop management models based on the sensory enjoyment of their consumers.

Originality/value

One of the novelties of this study is that it considers the consumer happiness variable and its dimensions in a consumer behavior model together with CBE.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 62 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

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