Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Date of this Version
2022
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Reference services are personal assistance given to library users in their search for information and these services are most likely patronized by those who are aware of them, hence, this study investigated the awareness and patronage of library reference services among undergraduate students in Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo State, Nigeria. The study adopted survey design and a multistage sampling technique was used to select 370 undergraduate for the study. Questionnaire was used for data collection and was administered to 370 respondents out of which, 317 copies were found useful for the study. The research questions were answered using simple frequency, percentage and mean statistics. Findings of the study revealed that although the undergraduates were generally aware of the reference services, they were unaware of SDI, digital reference and reprographic services. Also, apart from user education and CAS, the patronage of other reference services in this study was low. Inadequate reference sources and poor human relation of library staff were the main challenges of reference services patronage. It was therefore, recommended that funds set aside for the acquisition of reference sources should be utilized, and management should invest on ICTs and human resources. While staff with the right mindset for service provision should be identified and deployed to the reference section to attract more patronage for reference services in particular and the library in general.