Text a librarian: a look from the user perspective

Abstract

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to provide an in-depth examination of the use and non-use of text reference service among library users, seeking to evaluate the service from library users' perspective and hence enhance the professional understanding of the best practices of text reference service. Design/methodology/approach – A survey study was conducted among library users, examining user demographics, user's texting behavior, user awareness of text reference service, and users' use or non-use of the service. Findings – Findings suggest that the majority of library users have not used the service and their non-use is primarily attributed to their lack of awareness. Users who have used the service report a high degree of satisfaction and appreciate the convenience, ease of use and speediness of the service. Practical implications – The paper helps interested libraries develop an enriched view of texting's affordance as a reference service venue and thus make more informed decisions in successfully implementing the service. Originality/value – Text reference is the most recent reference development and it does not have a large body of literature. Current reports are primarily of a single library's experience and rarely investigate users' experience with text reference service. This paper fills the void in the literature by presenting a thorough study of text reference service from the user's point-of-view.

Factors impacting library-related uses of mobile phones by students in public universities in Malawi

“…For instance, a study conducted by Song and Lee (2012) of international students enrolled at the College of Business at the University of Illinois found that the high total cost of ownership (costs for handsets and monthly data plans) was the main reason 39% of the respondents did not own a tablet computer. A study conducted by Luo (2014) at San Jose State University revealed that some of the respondents to the study did not access the SMS library service because they did not have a texting plan on their mobile phone contracts. Although cost has been identified as a factor in access to library services through mobile phones, trends of mobile phone usage as seen in studies by Lo et al (2016) and Vassilakaki, Moniarou-Papaconstantinou and Garoufallou (2016) show that students still used their mobile phones to access social media and to communicate with their friends and relations using emails, SMS and chats.…”

“…University libraries in various parts of the world are taking advantage of the proliferation of mobile phones among students , Kumar 2014) coupled with the tremendous computing power they possess (Hossain & Ahmed 2016) to offer services to their clients (Bomhold 2014, Luo 2014. Mobile phones are used to deliver user services (book renewals; e-book and e-journal access), reference services (user queries and instructional services), informational services (notifications), and others.…”

“…Much as this is the case, usage of the services ranks lower when compared to other services that students access using their mobile phones, including communicating with friends and family through calls, text, SMS, or email; connecting to social media tools such as Facebook; and playing games (Lo et al 2016, Vassilakaki, Moniarou-Papaconstantinou & Garoufallou 2016. Other studies have pointed to technological characteristics associated with mobile phones such as the small screen size, slow internet speed and cost of accessing services as factors militating against access to library services offered through mobile phones (Luo 2014, De Wee 2013. Nevertheless, the small screen size of most mobile phones, slow internet speed and cost, among others, seem not to have affected university students' use of mobile phone for social or communication purposes (Lo et al 2016, Vassilakaki, Moniarou-Papaconstantinou & Garoufallou 2016.…”

eReadiness of public university libraries in Malawi to use mobile phones in the provision of library and information services

“…University libraries are increasingly offering their services through a number of mobile phone applications (Luo, 2014) and also creating webpages that are accessed through mobile phones (Bridges et al, 2010;Wilson and McCarthy, 2010). In the context of Malawi, no studies on the use of mobile phone to provide library and information services are available.…”

Understanding library users’ preferences and expectations of online help

“…Personal and contextual factor could influence a user's decision to use help (Fisher 1983). Librarians have undertaken various studies to evaluate the effective of digital reference services (Pellegrino 2012;Luo 2014). While these studies are useful to libraries looking for best practices in designing online help, they focus on the behaviors of students and effectiveness of existing systems, versus examining how the behaviors of students are reflected in users' preferences in online library help systems.…”