Usage of information resources by computer engineering students: a case study of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
| Pages | 318-325 |
| Published date | 01 October 2002 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520210447886 |
| Date | 01 October 2002 |
| Author | Shaheen Majid,Ai Tee Tan |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
Usage of information
resources by computer
engineering students:
a case study of
Nanyang Technological
University, Singapore
Shaheen Majid and
Ai Tee Tan
Introduction
Adequate knowledge about the information
needs of users is imperative for libraries in
re-orienting their collections, services and
activities to synchronise them with the
information seeking behaviour of users.
Bandara (1993, p. 19) noted that ``if the
library is to provide any meaningful
information service, the user [information
seeking] habits should be taken into
consideration''. Information seeking is a
broad term encompassing the ways
individuals articulate their information needs,
seek, evaluate, select and use the needed
information (Majid et al., 2000). Many
factors contribute to the selection and use of
different information sources such as: cost,
past success, accuracy, reliability,
comprehensiveness, usefulness, currency,
response time, accessibility, technical quality
and the format (Shanmugan, 1999; Yang,
1998). Investigations into the information
needs and information seeking patterns of
individuals would help improve the current
information systems and resources for
catering to the ever changing needs of their
users.
Several studies have investigated the
information needs and information seeking
behaviour of different categories of
individuals such as academics, lawyers,
scientists, technologists, medical
practitioners, students, etc. Brown (1999)
investigated the information needs and
seeking behaviour of chemists,
mathematicians and physicists at the
University of Oklahoma through an
electronically distributed survey. A total of 26
faculty members from chemistry, and 27
academics, each from mathematics and
physics, participated in the study. It was
found that all faculty members relied heavily
on journals to support their research
activities. However, for mathematicians there
was an extra reliance on monographs,
preprints, conference papers and personal
communications. A majority of the scientists
also indicated that they preferred print journal
articles over those published electronically.
Ocholla (1996) also studied the information
seeking behaviour of academics at the Moi
University, Kenya. A total of 27 academics
The authors
Shaheen Majid is Assistant Professor and Ai Tee Tan
was a Graduate Student, both at the Division of
Information Studies, School of Communication and
Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singpore.
Keywords
User studies, Information retrieval, Singapore
Abstract
This study investigates the information needs and
information seeking behaviour of computer engineering
undergraduate students at Nanyang Technological
University (NTU), Singapore. The purpose was to
investigate the types of information sources used by the
students, their preferred information formats, the
importance of and reasons for using certain information
sources and the use of various electronic information
sources. A questionnaire was distributed to 200 randomly
selected students and 102 completed questionnaires were
returned. The study found that printed materials were the
most preferred information format among the students.
The top five most preferred information sources, in the
order of importance, were books, lecturers, the Internet,
friends and manuals. Unexpectedly, the use of databases
and electronic journals was quite low among the
computer engineering students. The study recommends a
promotional campaign for introducing electronic
information sources to the library users.
Electronic access
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Refereed article received 18 June 2002
Approved for publication 1 July 2002.
318
Online Information Review
Volume 26 .Number 5 .2002 .pp. 318±325
#MCB UP Limited .ISSN 1468-4527
DOI 10.1108/14684520210447886
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