Information seeking behaviour of students at saint John of God college of health sciences, Malawi

Abstract

Understanding students` information seeking behaviour is paramount in the information service delivery of any academic library. When the library is aware of and understands the information seeking behaviour of its users, it can re-design its services to match and meet students’ information needs. This enables the library to produce services and collections which will meet the needs of the users. The purpose of the study was to investigate the information seeking behaviour of students at Saint John of God College of Health Sciences (SJOGCHS). The researcher was more concerned on how students struggle in seeking for information in meeting their information need. The study addressed the following objectives: to assess the information needs of students at Saint John of God College of Health Sciences; to determine the information sources that students consult at Saint John of God College of Health Sciences; and to examine the challenges and barriers faced by students when accessing and using information at Saint John of God College of Health Sciences. This study used an explanatory sequential mixed method design, underpinned by the pragmatic research paradigm and was guided by Wilsons`(1996) Model of Information seeking Behaviour model. The researcher determined the sample size by employing census method to select all the 100 students to participate in the study. Purposive sampling was used to select library staff and ICT Officer. The researcher collected quantitative data from the students using questionnaires. The resarcher collected qualitative data from students, Assistant Librarian and ICT Officer using interview guides. Quantitaive data was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and thematic analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. The study findings show that majority of the students need information for academic purposes. Results further show that students visit the library for various reasons such as writing research projects, to study for exams, for updating knowledge and for current affairs. Further, the students preferred electronic format of information. The study findings reveal that students consult electronic books and internet as their information source. Further the fininding show that lack of awareness on information resource available in the library; lack of online information literacy skills; poor ICT facilities; unreliable internet access; lack of essential text-books and limited computers as some of the factors which discourage students information seeking behaviour. The study findings provided direction to both college management and policy makers on improving students learning and development by evaluating library services and programmes, creating user-centered initiatives, and addressing students' information behaviour when designing strategies to support student learning and development. Finally, the study recommended that Saint John of God College of Health Sciences should expand free internet access for students and invest in improving ICT facilities to enhance students' information seeking behavior and foster academic success.