Research scholars and faculty members perception and participation in collection development of university libraries of Northern India – a comparative study
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-01-2021-0001 |
| Published date | 09 August 2021 |
| Date | 09 August 2021 |
| Pages | 619-647 |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Information in society,Information literacy,Library & information services |
| Author | Har Singh,Preeti Mahajan |
Research scholars and faculty
members perception and
participation in collection
development of university
libraries of Northern India –a
comparative study
Har Singh
Central Library, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology,Patiala, India, and
Preeti Mahajan
Department of Library and Information Science, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
Abstract
Purpose –This study aims to investigateresearch scholars’and faculty members’perception,participation
in collection development,satisfaction with the adequacy of the library collection and challenges facedduring
the recommendationof resources in selected university libraries of NorthernIndia.
Design/methodology/approach –The data was collected with the help ofa structured questionnaire
from the researchscholars and faculty members fromall disciplines of five universities of Northern India.The
comparison between the researchers andfaculty members was carried out within the university, as well as
across the universities.A total of 652 questionnaireswere distributed, out of which 465 filled questionnaires
were finally selected for data analysis. The collected data was analyzed with the help of SPSS and the
hypotheseswere tested using Chi-square (
x
2
) test.
Findings –The survey results found significantdifferences in awareness of collection development policy
(CDP), as well as the recommendation of resources (i.e. textbooks, reference books, journals and magazines
and non-book materials)between the research scholars and faculty members acrossthe libraries. However, no
significant difference was found between the opinion of the research scholars and faculty members on the
adequacyof library collection across the libraries.
Research limitations/implications –The study was limitedto five university libraries of North India
which included Maharishi Dayanand University (Rohtak) and Kurukshetra University (Kurukshetra) from
the State of HaryanaPanjab University from Union Territory of Chandigarhand Punjabi University (Patiala)
and Guru Nanak Dev University(Amritsar) from the state of Punjab.
Practical implications –The outcomes of this study will undoubtedlyhelp the library authorities and
management to understand the awareness of users (i.e. research scholars and faculty members) about the
collection developmentprocess such as CDP of the library, kind of resources recommend, their assessmenton
adequacyof different kind of resources and their ultimate satisfactionfrom it.
Originality/value –The study is an extensive survey about theperception and participation of research
scholars and facultymembers in the collection development process of their respectivelibraries and indicates
their satisfactionfrom the library collection.
Keywords Library collection development, Collection development policy,
Research scholar’s participation in collection development,
Faculty members participation in collection development, University libraries in India,
User’s perception and participation in collection development
Paper type Research paper
Research
scholars
619
Received15 January 2021
Revised12 February 2021
25June 2021
Accepted29 June 2021
GlobalKnowledge, Memory and
Communication
Vol.71 No. 6/7, 2022
pp. 619-647
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2514-9342
DOI 10.1108/GKMC-01-2021-0001
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/2514-9342.htm
Introduction
The primary function of any library is the collection, storage and dissemination of
information. Of these, “collection”occupies the most important position as it affects the
other two functions, i.e. storage and disseminationof information. Collection development is
significant for all types of libraries and has always been a great challenge for librarians
worldwide. It is the backbone of all library services and supportsthe mission of the library
and the ultimate satisfaction of users’needs. Libraries today acquire books, journals,
government publications, manuscripts, etc., in print and a non-print form within a
framework of collection development policy (CDP). CDP lays down the rules for assessing
the need, how the collection will be developed, which documents would be acquired, who
would suggest the acquisition of documents, book acquisition process, etc. The shrinking
budgets, the exponential growth of literature in different formats and ever-increasing
subscription costs have made CDP all the more important. As the optimum use of
information is the basic priority of all librarianstoday and the effectiveness and efficiency of
any library depend on the suitable collection building, that is not an easy task. Hence, it is
essential for any library, especially a university library, to developa collection that satisfies
the academicians, researchers and other users of the institution, thereby providing support
to the research and academic goals of the institution. The academic librarians, thus plan
their collection building with the help of collection development guidelines and acquire the
right documents for the right users.Developing a quality selection of documents, extensive
knowledge of the subject, awareness of the classic works in a field, current trends, users’
needs, etc., is essential. Hence, collection development in academic libraries requires the
involvement of both library professionals and the community it serves, including faculty
and the students. Academic libraries thereby have conventionally allowed their users to
recommend the resources, althoughthe authority of collection development resides with the
librarians (Hodges et al.,2010). Collection development has always been a joint
responsibility of faculty members and librarians (Rahman and Darus, 2004). The
responsibility of academic libraries includes access to resources, services and supporting
users (Blummer et al.,2017).
There is a need for perception and assessmentof users’needs, continuous evaluation and
improvement of the library collection, etc. Many academic libraries in India continue to
acquire, store and disseminate information in print form. No doubt, many university
libraries do have their collectionin electronic form, yet it is not up to the mark. The academic
librarians can balance the hybrid collection(print and electronic) by involving their users in
it, continuous evaluationcollection, adopting feedback mechanisms,etc. In light of the above
facts, a need was felt to research the topic of Research Scholars and Faculty Members
Perception and Participation in Collection Development of University Libraries. Therefore, it
is very significant that the collectiondevelopment process of different university libraries is
examined by keeping in mind the participation of their users especially teaching fraternity
and scholars. Consequently, the study demonstrates the extent of the research scholar’s and
faculty member’s involvementin the collection development, frequency of recommendation,
recommendation mode and reasons for not recommending the resources for their respective
libraries.
Review of literature
The users’participation incollection development has been studied from time to time.Some
such studies undertakenby various scholars are categorized below in chronologicalorder:
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