ENHANCING USER SATISFACTION: THE PIVOTAL ROLE OF INFORMATION RETRIEVAL TOOLS IN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES IN RIVERS STATE

Abstract

University libraries cannot be a life transforming institution without been usable and accessible. This basic concept of usability and accessibility of a library largely depend on effective Information Retrieval Tools (IRT) which in turn ensures users’ satisfaction. Hence, the study which investigated; enhancing user satisfaction: the pivotal role of information retrieval tools in university libraries in River State. Descriptive research survey was adopted. The population of the study is 99 library staff. The sample of the study is 90 library staff. A purposive sampling technique was used to gather 99 library staff; para-professional and professional staff in university libraries in Rivers State. A structured questionnaire “Enhancing User Satisfaction Questionnaire (EUSQ) was designed and adopted for the study. The instrument was validated by experts in the field of study. Reliability was by test re-test method. This study was analyzed using simple percentages and mean scores. The result shows that online catalogues for resource discovery, electronic databases for accessing scholarly article and open access repositories for accessing free scholarly content were used as information retrieval tools in university libraries in Rivers State and they are highly utilized by users. The finding revealed that information retrieval tools assist users to find up-to-date information for their research, information retrieval tools save library users’ time in locating resources, thereby improving the overall library users’ satisfaction with the library. The study revealed the challenges associated with the use of information retrieval tools by library users, which are; inadequate technology infrastructure, limited access to modern technology, insufficient digital literacy skills, while possible solutions are; computer literacy training programmes, updating digital collections regularly among others. In conclusion, university libraries and librarians cannot be a life transforming institution and responsible staff without been usable and accessible. This study recommended among others that; University library managements should continuously monitor usage statistics and gather user feedback to access the effectiveness of IRT tools and make necessary adjustments, and the need for collaboration between librarians, IT staff, and academic departments to optimize information retrieval tools for specific academic disciplines.