Attitudes towards infopreneurship among information science students at a higher education institution

Abstract

This study aimed to explore the attitudes of students of a higher education institution towards infopreneurship. The study emanated from observations that the widespread use of information technologies has created a new sector in the labor market – infopreneurship. The study adopted the case study research design based on focus group discussions to establish the students’ attitudes towards infopreneurship. The participants for the focus groups were students of the Information Science department at the University of Technology, Cape Town. Data collection during the focus group discussions was based on unstructured interviews. Quantitative data analysis was applied based on data reduction from codes to categories. An enterprising attitude (26.4% code frequency) dominated the positive responses while negative attitudes were mainly reflected by a critical attitude (20.8% code frequency) towards infopreneurship. While it appeared that positive attitudes were more prevalent than negative attitudes, there were notable observations that the respondents were critical or neutral towards the essence of infopreneurship in the South African context. It was found that the belief that infopreneurship is not a viable form of employment was still prevalent. Some respondents believed that employment means working for someone. They felt that there is greater respect in being employed than engaging in infopreneurship. Some respondents, however, appear to have stronger entrepreneurial orientations and felt that infopreneurship offers the best employment opportunities. The study recommends changes in higher education curricula and the creation of a stimulating environment for infopreneurship.

A systematic review of infopreneurship’s opportunities and challenges

“…For graduates of LIS programs and other relevant academic subjects, infopreneurship practice has opened their eyes to the possibility of employment and independence (Ivwurie and Ocholla, 2016). Information professionals nowadays are forced to adapt, survive, and compete in the world of virtual information by using new talents and techniques (Du Toit, 2000; Lose and Khuzwayo, 2022). Some examples of recent infopreneurship opportunities in the librarianship profession include, but are not limited to:…”

“…Customized information: In this age of information explosion, information that has been synthesized and customized to the demands of the user to meet their information needs has been critical. This entailed converting information into a readily understandable manner (e.g., computer generated graphics) (Aregbesola et al, 2019; Beriya, 2022; Lose and Khuzwayo, 2022; Mubofu and Mambo, 2021). Librarians, as information specialists, have the ability to repackage or simplify material such that even a layperson may understand the message hidden in a properly prepared research paper.…”