Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective
The research evaluated public libraries in Pakistan concerning their ICT resources, services and use of various ICT tools in service delivery. The research was quantitative and relied on a survey to collect the necessary data. The study’s population was all the public libraries in the country that w...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SAGE Publishing
2023-11-01
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| Series: | SAGE Open |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231201745 |
| _version_ | 1797628963411984384 |
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| author | Mohamad Sohail Haider Chen Ya Muhammad Hussain |
| author_facet | Mohamad Sohail Haider Chen Ya Muhammad Hussain |
| author_sort | Mohamad Sohail Haider |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The research evaluated public libraries in Pakistan concerning their ICT resources, services and use of various ICT tools in service delivery. The research was quantitative and relied on a survey to collect the necessary data. The study’s population was all the public libraries in the country that were run by any department or directorate. A census-based survey was done to get information from the whole population. The data was collected from the heads of the libraries through questionnaire, and then it was analyzed with the help of SPSS version 23. The public libraries were governed by various bodies, and variations were also found in the nomenclature of the libraries’ heads. Most libraries’ heads were LIS professionals; however, many were operated by non-professional employees. Most libraries offered services like circulation, reference, orientation, open shelf and photocopying facilities. It was also identified that most libraries did not offer some common services such as document reservation services, OPAC, indexing and abstracting services, interlibrary loans, SDI and audiovisual services, scanning and CD/DVD writing facilities. Since this is the first study of its kind, its findings could prove useful to the government of Pakistan in improving public library services. In addition, it will fill a gap in the literature and direct researchers to investigate other facets of public libraries. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:47:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0ec9e6ca9b3e45c1a88babd29b289d28 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2158-2440 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:47:42Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | SAGE Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-0ec9e6ca9b3e45c1a88babd29b289d282023-11-13T21:33:38ZengSAGE PublishingSAGE Open2158-24402023-11-011310.1177/21582440231201745Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani PerspectiveMohamad Sohail Haider0Chen Ya1Muhammad Hussain2Nanjing University, P.R. ChinaNanjing University, P.R. ChinaKhushal Khan Khattak University Karak, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PakistanThe research evaluated public libraries in Pakistan concerning their ICT resources, services and use of various ICT tools in service delivery. The research was quantitative and relied on a survey to collect the necessary data. The study’s population was all the public libraries in the country that were run by any department or directorate. A census-based survey was done to get information from the whole population. The data was collected from the heads of the libraries through questionnaire, and then it was analyzed with the help of SPSS version 23. The public libraries were governed by various bodies, and variations were also found in the nomenclature of the libraries’ heads. Most libraries’ heads were LIS professionals; however, many were operated by non-professional employees. Most libraries offered services like circulation, reference, orientation, open shelf and photocopying facilities. It was also identified that most libraries did not offer some common services such as document reservation services, OPAC, indexing and abstracting services, interlibrary loans, SDI and audiovisual services, scanning and CD/DVD writing facilities. Since this is the first study of its kind, its findings could prove useful to the government of Pakistan in improving public library services. In addition, it will fill a gap in the literature and direct researchers to investigate other facets of public libraries.https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231201745 |
| spellingShingle | Mohamad Sohail Haider Chen Ya Muhammad Hussain Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective SAGE Open |
| title | Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective |
| title_full | Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective |
| title_fullStr | Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective |
| title_full_unstemmed | Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective |
| title_short | Services of Public Libraries in the Age of Technology: A Pakistani Perspective |
| title_sort | services of public libraries in the age of technology a pakistani perspective |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231201745 |
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