Barriers to Library Information Access by Health Professionals

Barriers to Library Information Access by Health Professionals

(by Ndhlovu Assurance Sipho.)

[This article is borrowed from a research done by Miriam Kakai, R. Ikoja–Odongo and I.M.N. Kigongo–Bukenya at Makerere University in Uganda]

Information is a valuable resource in today’s information society. And acquiring, using and implementing information is a critical activity. This process is known as the “information seeking process”. Information seeking is a basic individual activity (Wiberley, 1989), which involves a set of actions that an individual takes to express his information needs, seek, evaluate and select information, and finally uses it to satisfy his/her information needs.  

Information seeking behaviour refers to the way people search for and utilize information (Fairer–Wessels, 1990:361). It further involves personal reasons for seeking information, the kinds of information which are being sought, and the ways and sources with which needed information is being sought. It is expressed in various forms, from reading printed material to research and experimentation. In most times the user’s information seeking behaviour involves active or purposeful information seeking as a result of the need to complete course assignments, prepare for class discussions, seminars, workshops, conferences, or write final year research papers.

Scholars and students actively seek current information from the various media available in libraries, e.g. Encyclopedias, journals and more currently, electronic media. An individual user has many paths for accessing his/her desired information and there are many factors which decide his information seeking behaviour. These factors include the time spent in search of information, knowledge about information sources, the way of expressing their information needs etc.

Even in the most information-rich contexts, one can find barriers to information seeking. Various factors have been noted as affecting the information seeking behaviour of individuals or groups of individuals, i.e. purpose for information, channels and sources of information and barriers to information.  While we often think of information barriers in terms of physical limits to access (e.g., a lack of information resources or the means to retrieve them), information seeking can be hampered in multiple ways. Research barriers, lack of resources, lack of time, inadequate skills, and inadequate access, lack of knowledge and financial barriers are some of the most common barriers. Other barriers include the governance model that establishes power relationships between administrators, tutors, and librarians or the expectations surrounding student autonomy within the institution and library set-up.

These constraining forces tend to limit the extent to which the user’s needs are addressed further, the mission, and the vision of the library as the ideal environment for information access and use. Within these situational constraints, librarians are challenged to define their roles as mediators and instructors for the library user population.

In particular reference to students, Fister (1992:168) notes that undergraduate students are smart people, but find the university library to be a threatening place and find the process of information search intimidating. Their experience is not unique to them but is shared by all first time library users. Unfortunately most of these users do not get to learn the basic information seeking skills on time. They end up using trial and error methods of information search that in turn limit their capabilities to satisfy their needs. Wilson’s 1996 model points out that in the process of seeking information, problems are encountered. Taylor (1990) observes that after interacting with the information sources (like in a library), what a user actually needs may not tally with what is practically available, due to constraints either within the stock or due to the users own inability. Mellon (1986) notes that most users, especially first time users encounter barriers like library anxiety. User’s perceptions of the library and its programs also act as intervening variables to information utilisation in the library.

Improving information seeking strategies

Finding ways of intercepting the barriers to information seeking is one of the solutions to improving the library user’s information seeking behaviour. Bearing in mind that contact with users especially in institutions with a student set-up structure, is either through reference interviews or bibliographic instruction sessions, Martin and Metcalfe (2001) acknowledged that modes of informing are specific to each person’s concern, as are the topics they want to be informed about. Both note that libraries in the past sought to accommodate this need by promoting current awareness services (CAS) and selective dissemination of information (SDI), either through print or electronic means. These are user outreach avenues that can still be optimally utilized in addition to customising access points in accordance with user interests, such as using the Internet or the institution’s intranet. 

In student set-up situations, Fister (1992:163–164) analysed and compared the bibliographic instruction and information search processes taught to students and the approaches that students used in seeking information. He concluded that students should not be left to flounder on their own and similarly other first time and regular users. Library skills should be put in context of the information search process. Callison (1997:355) recommends increased efforts to expand instruction beyond the one–time lessons done when in introducing users and students in particular to the library. Lau (2001) observed that although librarians had assumed the role of user information educators, their work tended to occur in isolation. Teamwork is needed to make library instruction part of the learning process. The publicity services provided in an information institution play a big role in influencing how its resources are utilized and how the users seek for information.

Understanding the actual needs of information users and taking steps to satisfy them is the first step towards effective service provision. Librarians, especially those involved in user education (library information skills) should be interested in ways individuals approach the library and the methods they use to search for needed information. To this end, librarians could redesign strategies intended to improve the provision of library services especially towards information skills development and information resource awareness.

References

Callison, D., 1997. “Evolution of methods to measure student information use,” Library and Information Science Research, volume 19, number 4, pp. 347–357.

Fister, B., 1992. “The Research process of undergraduate students” Journal of Academic Librarianship, volume 18, number 3, pp. 163–169.

Lau, J., 2001. “Faculty–Librarian collaboration: A Mexican experience,” Reference Service Review, volume 29, number 2, pp. 95–105.

Martin, P. and M. Metcalfe, 2001. “Informing the knowledge workers,” Reference Services Review, volume 29, number 4, pp. 267–275.

Mellon, C.A., 1986. “Library anxiety: A Grounded theory and its development,” at http://www.library.arizona.edu/users/buchwaln/undergraduate.html, date retrieved 25 January 2003.

Miriam Kakai, R. Ikoja–Odongo and I.M.N. Kigongo–Bukenya (2004). A study of the information seeking behavior of undergraduate students of Makerere University, Uganda. Uganda: Makerere University.

Taylor, D.C., 1990. “Undergraduates’ use of periodicals: Implications for library reference work,” Reference Librarian, numbers 27/28, pp. 51–65.

Wiberley, S.E and Jones, W.G., 1989. “Patterns of information seeking in the humanities,” College & Research Libraries, volume 50, number 6, pp. 638–645.