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Article
Publication date: 19 March 2024

Kristy Padron and Sarah M. Paige

Many librarians are asked questions about copyright and intellectual property. They may be expected to advise on copyright or provide copyright education as part of their duties…

Abstract

Purpose

Many librarians are asked questions about copyright and intellectual property. They may be expected to advise on copyright or provide copyright education as part of their duties. Others may be “voluntold” to take on copyright, which may come as an unexpected addition to their workload. This case study provides suggestions for librarians to increase their copyright knowledge and create copyright education programs.

Design/methodology/approach

This case study showcases two copyright education programs created by a librarian in a college and another in a university. The librarians collaborated to learn more about the state of copyright education within academic libraries and explore their commonalities and differences. This case study introduces two copyright education programs and summarizes the state of copyright education within library and information science (LIS) and academic libraries.

Findings

The following themes within the two copyright education programs were identified through a case study: the complexity of copyright, the engagement (or lack thereof) across a college or university, the necessity of including copyright in information literacy instruction and the calls for professional development with copyright.

Research limitations/implications

This case study covers two differing institutions so its conclusions may not be applicable to all libraries or educational settings.

Practical implications

Many individuals who are in disciplines or occupations that regularly work with copyright may generate ideas for creating and providing continuing education within their organizations.

Originality/value

Library or education professionals can use the case study’s conclusions to inform and support their ongoing work with teaching and learning about copyright and intellectual property. By doing so, they can better support their students, faculty and institutions.

Details

Reference Services Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0090-7324

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 December 2023

Muhammad Ijaz Mairaj and Mahsham Mukaram

This study aims to examine the status, explores the hurdles and identifies the prospects for developing a union catalogue of university libraries in Lahore, Pakistan.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the status, explores the hurdles and identifies the prospects for developing a union catalogue of university libraries in Lahore, Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a quantitative research approach, a questionnaire was developed from literature and authors’ experience. After ensuring its validity and reliability, data were collected from librarians after the census. A total of 105 librarians were approached, of whom 73 (71%) responded to the survey.

Findings

University libraries in Lahore are well organized, have adequate collections and information technology-literate staff, are well automated, have good internet connections, are equipped with integrated software, follow cataloguing rules and MARC standards; however, the absence of standardized software, lack of funds, absence of uniform policy, professional workload and absence of standardized vocabulary are significant challenges. Private-sector librarians reported facing more challenges. Librarians consider all prospects vital for developing a union catalogue. These prospects include the availability of relevant information, incentives to librarians, coordination with librarians, a realization that sharing is caring, the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan taking initiative and librarians’ training.

Research limitations/implications

University librarians in Lahore are ready to cooperate with the development of a union catalogue; however, they seek support from higher authorities, professional library associations and the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is the first of its kind that examines the status, explores the hurdles and identifies the prospects for developing a union catalogue of university libraries in Lahore. It would lead to the development of a union catalogue of university libraries in Pakistan.

Details

Digital Library Perspectives, vol. 40 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2059-5816

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 May 2022

Muhammad Yousuf Ali, Salman Bin Naeem, Rubina Bhatti and Joanna Richardson

The purpose of this study Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the important emerging trends in information technology and is slowly being implemented in libraries. The…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the important emerging trends in information technology and is slowly being implemented in libraries. The researchers have presented a brief strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis of the application of AI in Pakistani university libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses an ethnographic approach for data retrieval. Five chief librarians were interviewed by phone, during which they were asked to identify one key strength, weakness, opportunity and threat in terms of introducing AI technologies. The researchers have used a standard SWOT matrix to report the respondents’ comments.

Findings

AI is already slowly being introduced into Pakistani university libraries. While commenting on ways in which AI could help their libraries deliver more innovative services and better meet user needs, respondents expressed concern about the investment required in funding, time and staff.

Research limitations/implications

Further study is indicated to identify existing AI implementations in Pakistani university libraries and to assess relevant library users’ perspectives. This study is limited to brief, qualitative data; its main purpose is to validate the use of a SWOT analysis.

Practical implications

Given that AI-based tools are already being used in libraries to some degree regardless of location, now is an opportune time to develop strategies for implementing AI technologies more widely. A SWOT analysis can be used to identify and categorize challenges and risks specific to AI in a logical way to support strategic decision-making.

Originality/value

To date, no SWOT analysis has been conducted in the context of AI applications in libraries, let alone specifically university libraries in Pakistan.

Details

Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, vol. 73 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9342

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 January 2024

Muvhulawa Matumba and Mogiveny Rajkoomar

Globally, mobile technology is a significant factor influencing how libraries are changing the ways of delivering services to today’s users. This paper aims to explore academic…

Abstract

Purpose

Globally, mobile technology is a significant factor influencing how libraries are changing the ways of delivering services to today’s users. This paper aims to explore academic librarians’ perceptions of the usefulness of mobile technology in delivering library services and the efforts required for its successful adoption.

Design/methodology/approach

The study was conducted within an interpretive paradigm. The research objectives were underpinned by the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology as a theoretical framework. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyses using NVIVO for thematic analysis.

Findings

Results show that, in general, academic librarians support the use of mobile technology to provide services such as access to eBooks and Journals, Online Public Access Catalogue, Bookmyne application, information literacy consultations and training. Library managers, fellow librarians and users were identified as encouraging the adoption of mobile technology to enhance library services. The paper further confirms that the successful adoption of mobile technology requires some effort. However, due to some of the challenges presented in the study, a majority of respondents felt that their libraries are not yet ready to fully embrace mobile technology the way it is envisioned in today’s world.

Practical implications

The study endeavours to address the divergence between students and academic librarians’ viewpoints regarding the application of mobile technology in the provision of library services.

Originality/value

This paper highlights numerous ways that academic librarians could adopt and embrace mobile technology, which can benefit both academic libraries and other institutions of higher learning. The knowledge presented in this paper could assist academic librarians in assessing their institutions’ vulnerabilities, challenges and strengths in using mobile technologies to provide library services.

Article
Publication date: 15 December 2023

Ugwunwa Esse and Yacob- Haliso

This study aims to investigate the facilitating conditions (FCs) and how these FC affect institutional repository (IR) sustainability practices in public universities in Nigeria.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the facilitating conditions (FCs) and how these FC affect institutional repository (IR) sustainability practices in public universities in Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey research design was adopted in this study. The study population comprised 542 librarians from public universities that have IRs across Nigeria. A sample size of 230 librarians was determined using Taro Yamane’s formula. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select the respondents in three stages, which were purposive, stratified and purposive sampling. A structured, validated questionnaire was used for data collection. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential (simple and multiple regression) statistics at a 5% level of significance.

Findings

The result revealed that the availability of FCs (ßeta = 0.459, t(211) = 7.719, p = 0.000) has a positive and significant influence on IR sustainability in public university libraries in Nigeria. The F-test (1, 223) value of 59.582 shows that there is sufficient evidence to substantiate the model’s usefulness in explaining IR sustainability. The R2 (0.211) indicates that 21.1% of the variation in IR sustainability is explained by the availability of FCs in public university libraries in Nigeria. The finding suggests that the availability of FCs is a vital predictor of IR sustainability in public university libraries in Nigeria. The result also depicts that out of the eight parameters that measure the availability of FCs, it was current awareness of IR that had a positive and significant influence on IR sustainability.

Originality/value

This study concluded that ICT skills and FCs are contributory factors to IR sustainability practices by librarians in public university libraries in Nigeria. It was recommended that university administrators formulate policies that promote the sustainability of IR and provide adequate funds to support IR sustainability. Furthermore, the library management in public university libraries in Nigeria should drive content recruitment and create awareness of the IRs among students and faculty to ensure continued use.

Details

Digital Library Perspectives, vol. 40 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2059-5816

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 March 2024

James D. Grant

The goal was emancipatory, to characterise and dislodge oppressive management practices, to allow for the possibility of seeking an alternative organisational construction free of…

Abstract

Purpose

The goal was emancipatory, to characterise and dislodge oppressive management practices, to allow for the possibility of seeking an alternative organisational construction free of postcolonial/subaltern subordination and discrimination in a local, well-documented narrative.

Design/methodology/approach

The study was informed by a postcolonial/subaltern perspective and drew on the employment experience of an Aboriginal woman, Canada’s first Indigenous Dean of a law school. The researcher employed a combination of case study and critical discourse analysis with the aim of advancing rich analyses of the complex workings of power and privilege in sustaining Western, postcolonial relations.

Findings

The study made several conclusions: first, that the institution, a medium-sized Canadian university, carefully controlled the Indigenous subaltern to remake her to be palatable to Western sensibilities. Second, the effect of this control was to assimilate her, to subordinate her Indigeneity and to civilise in a manner analogous to the purpose of Indian residential schools. Third, that rather than management’s action being rational and neutral, focused on goal attainment, efficiency and effectiveness, it was an implicit moral judgement based on her race and an opportunity to exploit her value as a means for the university’s growth and status.

Originality/value

Through a postcolonial/subaltern perspective, this study demonstrated how management practices reproduced barriers to the participation of an Indigenous woman and the First Nations community that an organisation was intended to serve. The study demonstrated how a Western perspective – that of a university’s administration, faculty and staff – was privileged, or taken for granted, and the Indigenous perspective subordinated, as the university remained committed to the dispossession of Indigenous knowledge and values.

Details

Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, vol. 19 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5648

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 December 2023

Rasha Kassem and Fotios Mitsakis

This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of academic and professional Higher Education (HE) staff in the UK.

Abstract

Purpose

This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of academic and professional Higher Education (HE) staff in the UK.

Design/methodology/approach

A mixed-method survey questionnaire was sent to almost 300 UK HE staff to secure qualitative and quantitative data to enable data triangulation.

Findings

The study found an adverse impact on academic and professional staff's mental health and wellbeing, further resulting in stress and anxiety. Several reasons for the increased stress and anxiety levels were identified, but social isolation and the increased workload were the most commonly reported. The most affected groups by the pandemic were females, younger staff, full-timers and those with disabilities or caring responsibilities.

Practical implications

This study offers a range of strategies to support staff's mental health and wellbeing; as such, it is of great interest to policymakers to inform their decisions of similar crisis events in the future. It also addresses some of the COVID-19 areas of research interest for the UK parliament.

Originality/value

The study's originality derives from exploring the pandemic's impact on UK HE staff's mental health and wellbeing by including professional staff's experiences alongside those of academics. It also expands the scant evidence concerning the pandemic's impact on HE staff in the UK.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 46 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 July 2023

Sylwia Przytula

The main objective of this paper is twofold: to analyse the progress of a research stream concerning expatriate academics in the last four decades and to make recommendations for…

Abstract

Purpose

The main objective of this paper is twofold: to analyse the progress of a research stream concerning expatriate academics in the last four decades and to make recommendations for further studies in this field.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the systematic literature review (SLR) concerning expatriate academics was applied. The search embraced the period from 1980–2022. The review was performed in two interdisciplinary electronic databases: Web of Science and Scopus. The selection process of papers was conducted in steps, as recommended by the PRISMA protocol. The total pool of articles received after the exclusion criteria was 110. The content of each paper was thus extracted and categorised in Excel file: author, year of publication, tittle of article, journal, theory applied, research method, sample size, country/field of investigation.

Findings

For almost three decades this topic was almost absent in the literature of the subject. The most active publication period started from 2009 and since then there have been two “waves” of published articles devoted to expatriate academics: 2009–2014 and 2017–2021. The significant number of studies appeared in Journal of Global Mobility followed by Personnel Review, IJHRM, Higher Education. The thematic analysis revealed six themes which have been already researched on expatriates academics: (1) motives, (2) adjustment, (3) job factors and work outcomes, (4) academic missions, (5) academic career, (6) women and men in academia.

Practical implications

Practitioners and university management might find this article useful as the article allows to manage this pool of international academics more efficiently with mutual benefits for expatriates and organisations. This study may assist the university authorities to develop systemic approach to attract foreign academics; adjust the same in work and culture domain through effective training; support in organisational, financial and career field; create the performance criteria of expatriate work related to three missions: research, teaching and service; introduce metrics and indicators to evaluate the contribution and work outcomes of foreign scientists into the host university.

Originality/value

This review shows that there are many new perspectives and models through which the academic expatriation can be analysed. This paper gives an insight into the academic literature on academics expatriates. The paper is innovative and has contributed to research by doing an SLR in a new area (academic expats) and tackling all the areas that has been covered by academic research so far. New research directions have been recommended for future research, to open the field further.

Details

Journal of Global Mobility: The Home of Expatriate Management Research, vol. 12 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-8799

Keywords

Abstract

Details

The Impact of ChatGPT on Higher Education
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83797-648-5

Article
Publication date: 26 April 2024

Rajender Kumar and Dinesh K. Gupta

The purpose of this paper is to examine the restructuring of human resources development processes in Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) libraries in North India, emphasizing…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the restructuring of human resources development processes in Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) libraries in North India, emphasizing the essential information and communications technology (ICT) skills for both recruits and existing staff.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a survey research design, with two different sets of structured questionnaires used to collect data. The first set, which was distributed to all heads of seven IIT libraries in North India, received a 100% response rate. Simultaneously, the second set was distributed to library users, yielding a 92% response rate (680 responses out of 700 distributed). The collected data were analyzed and tabulated, with suitable interpretations.

Findings

The findings of the study reveal that all examined libraries have implemented skill development programs. Moreover, advanced ICT skills are considered essential for staff appointments, and specific institutes (IIT Kanpur, IIT Delhi, IIT Jodhpur and IIT Ropar) took the initiative to provide ICT training to their employees. Trained employees exhibited enhanced performance, attributed to advanced ICT knowledge. The study suggests restructuring selection criteria and introducing structured ICT training programs for library staff, ensuring a more adept workforce for current demands.

Research limitations/implications

The study can increase the impact globally on human resource development by incorporating soft skills, job satisfaction and leadership development while exploring research opportunities through cross-institutional comparisons and the integration of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality.

Originality/value

This study collected primary data from IIT libraries in North India using self-designed questionnaires. The findings provide useful insights into how libraries might restructure human resource development in the digital age.

Details

Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9342

Keywords

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