Academic Librarianship and Information Research
Year:2023 | Volume:57 | Issue:2|Papers Count:6

Objective: The purpose of this research was to assess the information needs and information seeking behavior of the users of the Regional Science and Technology Information Center (RICEST).Methods: The study applied both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection as a mixed-method. Two hundred thirty-four users participated in the survey and four librarians were interviewed.Results: The findings show that the most information needs of the users were related to scientific activities, writing articles and dissertations, and performing job duties, respectively. The full text of the articles in the RICEST database, more up-to-date scientific sources, reliable sources in non-scientific subjects were among the other needs of the users. Despite the access to resources, more than half of the users faced obstacles in meeting their information needs. The lack of required resources and suitable guide in the database of RICEST and the lack of familiarity with the type and coverage of resources were the most important obstacles. From the users' point of view, Persian scientific publications were evaluated at good quality and other information sources were evaluated at the average level. The findings of the qualitative section showed that the users' needs are in two categories of services and information resources. On the one hand, the librarians considered the obstacles facing the users to be related to the lack of sufficient mastery of the English language, the lack of ability to find information and research methods, and on the other hand, they considered the lack of equipment to serve users with physical or movement problems.Conclusions: This study showed that most information needs of the users of the RICeST are related to their scientific research activities, and their information seeking behaviors are affected by these needs. Despite the range and coverage of the information sources indexed in the RICeST database, most of the users have difficulty in accessing the information. To effectively meet users’ information needs, it is necessary to carry out needs assessment studies periodically in the Regional Information Center for Science and Technology (RICeST).

Objective: The purpose of the current research was to evaluate and measure the effects of foresight on development policy in university libraries in Kermanshah using structural equation modeling.Methods: The research is applied in terms of purpose and causal in terms of descriptive nature. The statistical population includes librarians, faculty members, and managers of university libraries in Kermanshah. The research population consisted of 110 people and the sample size using the Morgan table included 86 people. The stratified sampling method was random. The method of collecting field data and the measurement tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. The validity of questionnaire was confirmed by content validity, and its reliability was calculated using Cronbach's alpha equal to 0.77. The method of data analysis was descriptive statistics and linear regression and structural equation modeling. The software used in the research was SPSS26 and Smart PLS 3.3.Results: The findings of the research show that foresight on the dimensions of development policy includes participation with a 58 percent effect, facilitating implementation with a 32 percent effect, informing with a 38 percent effect, support with a 42 percent effect and reconfiguration with a 54 percent effect. It has an impact on the development policy in academic libraries. Furthermore, the role of the moderating variable of policy was confirmed with 21 percent between the relationship among foresight and development policy.Conclusions: According to the findings of the research, which indicates the impact of foresight on the policy dimensions of the development of university libraries, it can be concluded that the foresight is an effective factor on the development policy and its dimensions with 23 percent impact.

Objective: This research has been carried out with the aim of investigating the effectiveness of using the intelligent speech recognition system in correctly retrieving the information of narrative literature for elementary school children.Methodology: This research is practical in terms of purpose and was done with a semi-experimental method. The statistical population of the research consists of first to third grade elementary school children, 36 of whom were selected as a sample using stratified sampling method. In order to conduct this study, two intelligent speech recognition system tools and a storytelling application called "Audio Story Book" were used. To collect the data, a questionnaire and a checklist designed according to the research questions. The questionnaire was used to complete the survey and evaluate the determined criteria. SPSS27 statistical software and one-way analysis of variance statistical test were used to analyze the data.Results: The findings of this research showed that the average number of errors in the story information retrieved by the children of the intelligent speech recognition system group with an average of 0.7 is more than the human voice group and less than the storytelling application group. The average length of story information retrieved by the children of the intelligent speech recognition system group with an average of 3.966 is less than the human voice group and more than the storytelling application group. The average speed of retrieving story information by children in the intelligent speech system group with an average of 2.583 is lower than the human voice group and higher than the storytelling application group. The average accuracy of story information retrieved by the speech recognition system group children is lower than the human voice group and higher than the storytelling application group with an average of 3.4.Conclusions: The results of this research showed that the use of intelligent speech recognition system is not significantly effective in correctly retrieving the information of narrative literature of primary school children. Children who were told stories by a human had higher accuracy and concentration, and this could be due to physical, emotional, eye, face-to-face communication and environmental conditions that affected their psyche and increased memory and learning performance, increased attention and concentration, quick processing of information, perceptual organization and recall of information, which led to their complete understanding and comprehension.

Objective: Specialized technical skills alone in the field of library and information management are not sufficient, and information specialists who demonstrate a combination of hard and soft skills are preferred by employers in the present era, as they possess a clear competitive advantage. Therefore, the aim of this research is to determine the current status of core skills among university librarians in Kermanshah province from the perspective of librarians working in these universities.Methods: The present research is applied in nature and conducted using a survey method. The statistical population of this study consists of all university librarians in Kermanshah province (58 individuals). The research was carried out through a census, and 51 completed questionnaires were returned. The Sanders questionnaire (2019) was used to collect research data. To test the reliability of the questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used, and the obtained alpha value was 0.81, indicating the desirable reliability coefficient for the questionnaire items. The collected data were analyzed using Friedman test and frequency distribution.Results: According to the Friedman test, the selected skills have a significant difference in mean, with the highest priority being HR/personnel management. Frequency distribution was used to answer other questions. The findings showed that 23 skills are needed by all graduates according to librarians, 21 skills are often needed by librarians, 3 skills are needed by some librarians, and 9 skills are needed by managers based on their frequency.Conclusions: The study showed that according to librarians in Kermanshah province's university libraries, the highest priority is human resource/personnel management, which is one of the managerial components. This means that librarians value the soft skills of their managers and consider it essential for managers to manage librarians in the best possible way and hire capable personnel. Interpersonal communication skills, customer service skills, search skills (ability to search databases, internet resources, and catalogs efficiently and effectively), evaluating and selecting information resources, teamwork, reader’s advisory, interacting with diverse communities and knowledge of professional ethics are among the other important skills considered in terms of librarians' needs. This means that all graduates must be familiar with these skills regardless of their future career path. Since according to librarians, soft skills are necessary for all graduates of the library and information science field, it seems that updating the curriculum of this field should focus on offering courses that teach these skills, and efforts should be made to teach soft skills to students through education. Also, two communication skills, interpersonal communication and customer service, which are the most important skills, are among the communication components. This also indicates the importance of communication skills for graduates. Soft skills are as important as hard skills, and students should try to learn soft skills regardless of their future career path to achieve success for themselves and their organization. Moreover, librarians should also try to improve their soft skills to be more successful in their careers.

Objective: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the quality of archival services in archival centers in Iran.Methods: The present study was conducted with a descriptive approach and a comparative causal method. The statistical population of this research was the employees of Iran's archival centers, a sample of 120 people was selected from among them, and the instrument used was a questionnaire. The statistical test used is one-sample T-test, ANOVA test and Friedman test.Results: According to the answers to the research questions related to each of the archival centers of Iran and in general regarding the quality of archival services, there is a significant difference between the obtained weighted average and the experimental average (5) at the significance level of 0.05. The t value and the degrees of freedom related to each of Iran's archival centers indicate that this difference is significant at the 0.05 level. In fact, the service quality of Iran's archival centers is higher than the desired level. The results of Tukey's post hoc test indicate that this difference is evident between the archival centers of Iran and the Astan Quds document center. Finally, according to the ranking obtained through the Friedman test in terms of prioritizing the quality of archival services in the studied archival centers, it can be stated as follows: 1. Astan Quds Document Center; 2. National Archives of Iran; 3. Center for documents of the Islamic Council; 4. Department of Documents and Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; 5. Contemporary History Studies Institute; and 6. Islamic Revolution Documentation Center.Conclusion: The results indicate that the status of service quality of archival centers is higher than the desired level. Also, there is a significant difference between the archival centers of Iran in terms of the quality of archival services, which is evident between the archival centers of Iran and the Astan Quds Document Center. This research is the first research in the field of measuring and evaluating the quality of archival services that has been carried out in the archival centers of Iran.

Objective: The aim of this study was to develop and validate a comprehensive model of using institutional repositories of e-learning. The focus was on identifying the influential factors of the repository in e-learning.Methods The present research is a qualitative study using the meta-synthesis method. In this research, the library method was used to collect data and information; and to analyze data the seventh-step process of Sadowski and Barroso for meta-synthesis was used. The research population of the study includes related studies (articles and dissertations) in the area of the role of the institutional repository dimensions in e-learning. The CASP evaluation checklist was used to ensure the quality of the studies. Finally, out of 129 retrieved studies, 28 titles were selected and then the thematic content was analyzed, coded, and categorized. Subsequently, quantitative research was carried out to validate the obtained model with the opinion of experts using the fuzzy TOPSIS technique.Results: Analysis of studies on the use of institutional repositories in e-learning led to the identification of 23 concepts, 14 categories and 6 components in this field. The main dimensions include data, metadata, search, retrieval, service, and resource component.Conclusions: Considering that learning management systems are used in electronic education; however, they are often feeble repositories for educational purposes, and they cannot generate metadata for easy search of resources, the possibility of interaction, sharing, and reuse of the information. Although, it cannot be integrated with other learning management systems to provide access to more resources. Therefore, the repository can promote e-learning and expand the capabilities of the learning management system.