The thesis examines those students in the department of Information Studies at Curtin University of Technology who have articulated into the Bachelor of Applied Science (Information and Library Studies) through holding an Associate Diploma which qualifies them as paraprofessional library technicians.An analysis of students in the department over a period of ten years examines the number and characteristics of library technicians upgrading their qualifications and compares the academic performance of articulating students with those who have no previous qualifications in librarianship. This examination reveals little difference in the academic performance of the two groups. Interviews with academic staff and students reveal attitudes towards articulation, articulating students, education and the relationship between the professional and paraprofessional levels in librarianship which will need to be taken into account in future curricula and course development.

Magister Bibliothecologiae - MBibl / For any academic work at a university, students and staff are entirely dependent on the adequacy of the library. That is why the reason for the existence of university libraries is to provide essential study and reference material to supplement the instruction given to students in the lecture-rooms, as well as to support academic progress and research. the problem addressed in this study is to look into lecturing staff and full-time students' attitudes towards the University of the Western Cape Library. An attempt is made to identify their attitudes toward the services and the materials they are offered. In order to assess, the success of one particular library, the University of the Western Cape Library; in appeasing the needs of its users, a survey of its full-time students and lecturing staff population of six faculties was undertaken during 1999 to solicit their views on the library and its ability to fulfill their needs. The study is approached within the context of user studies as a scientific discipline around which a growing body of theoretical concepts have been formulated. It is also an area of research in which many surveys around the user and her / his needs have been conducted over the preceding decades. In particular the user of the academic library and his needs, especially at undergraduate as well as postgraduate level have been the objects of investigation. There seems to be a need to involve library staff in continuing education programmes. This will assist library users, who can expect to be informatively supported by the library .staffwho are both knowledgeable and up to date in their fields. It all helps to add to the professional competence of the staff and the skills that they produce to satisfy user needs. There are also issues for debate with regard to books and periodicals collections. It is hoped that with a better library orientation, better search strategies will be encouraged and then, probably, even more users will be satisfied with the stock. However, bearing in mind that the majority use of the library stock, on most occasions, is limited to the items available in the reserve section. Care should be taken that selection criteria are strictly adhered to, and that all the subjects taught at the university are covered, so that there are no gaps in the collections. A very real problem to the university is one of finance. The cost to duplicate, for example, prescribed texts sufficiently, will absorb a large proportion of book funds, which will mean less money left for building a balanced research, book and periodical collection. It is therefore suggested that the Senate Library Committee should try and put a well-balanced library budget in place. This will insure that the library that is regarded as the heart of the university will remain a relevant and integral part of every student's life on campus.

This thesis explores the attitudes of Swedish university library staff towards marginalia in library books. The study aimed to investigate their experiences and opinions on the topic and any existing routines and guidelines regarding marginalia. Additionally, the study aimed to compare its findings to previous literature, which had made negative assumptions about how librarians feel about marginalia. Despite these assumptions, there has been no research to support them. The study used a mixed-method approach and collected data through a questionnaire. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis. Based on the results, it was found that library staff regularly come across marginalia in library books. While most staff members hold a negative view towards marginalia, there are varying opinions that differ from what previous literature suggests. Those with negative attitudes believe that marginalia ruins the book as an object and hinders future readers from reading autonomously. However, there are also positive attitudes towards marginalia, with some believing that it is a sign of the book being used and that the reader has benefited in some way. Overall, those with both negative and positive views understand marginalia as a byproduct of reading and studying and as a study technique. Current routines and guidelines do not provide much information about handling books with marginalia, with only a few mentioning it. Some library staff believe that explicit guidelines are necessary, while others consider marginalia an inevitable part of libraries and therefore do not require guidelines.

The present study attempted to answer two questions: do academic library users have a distinctive and useful input to make to library strategic planning? If they do, what mechanisms will permit them to participate effectively in this planning process? To address these questions research was carried out in two stages at a single institutional site, the Canberra College of Advanced Education. The first of these utilised a structured group discussion process, Nominal Group Technique (NGT). This was used both as an indicator of user planning priorities and as a pilot research technique contributing to the design of a subsequent survey. This survey obtained a response rate of over 90 percent from a sample of 379. The study attempted to establish that academic staff and students do have a worthwhile input to make to planning by testing for congruence between the rankings of library planning priorities of these user groups and the rankings of planning priorities of Library staff. No strong positive correlations were established between the priorities of student groups and Library staff, although in the survey the priorities of academic staff and Library staff were found to be related. These results suggest users do have a worthwhile input to make to library strategic planning. Other tests for congruence were also applied between and within respondent groups, because if a group was found to have different priorities there would be a prima facie case for consulting members of that group as part of the planning process. Both mechanisms used in the present study were considered successful. User surveys have been employed for planning in previous studies with a future-oriented component. However, it appears that this may have been the first formally reported application of NGT to library management. Experience in the present study suggests it is a highly suitable technique for situations such as strategic planning, where generation of ideas or comment on priorities is required. However, an attempt to establish congruence between the results obtained using NGT and those obtained from the survey yielded inconclusive results. It is believed that major changes in the institutional environment were principally responsible for this, although a methodological limitation may also have contributed. The study concludes with suggestions for further research.

Introduction: The aim of this thesis is to explore library staff’s experiences of participation in a time of change, in this case, a move to new facilities. Using interviews and grounded theory, this qualitative study focuses on how such a change is planned, presented to the staff, and implemented. Method: In this study, twelve library employees from Swedish public libraries were interviewed about their experiences of participation during a move of the library to a new building or recently renovated building. The interviews have been analyzed using grounded theory and terms from organizational theory in order to categorize them and find differences and similarities in the experiences they describe. The organizational terms used for categorizing and analysis were participation, motivation, competence, communication, and information.Recent literature on the subject is scarce, and as a result the literature overview consists of texts from different areas, such as architecture, library and information science and organizational theory, in order to capture the interest of this study. Findings: The study found that library staff feel motivated to participate in workplace changes and want to be part of the planning process, preferably from beginning to end, but to engage properly they need both time and information. The results also suggest that library employees and architects need to find better strategies for collaboration. The library staff think that the architects do not have enough knowledge about the work tasks of library personnel and therefore cannot plan an effective library building. The library employees need more knowledge about the building process in order to explain why and how their workplace is to be built to accommodate the staff and their library users. This is a two-year master’s thesis in Library and Information Science.

This study aims to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management and user services of the public libraries staff in Denton County, Texas, by understanding the challenges faced by library staff during the pandemic, adaptation strategies used, and lessons learned for future crises. The study employed quantitative methodology, utilizing a survey distributed online via email to 152 library staff. Participants were selected through a random sampling method, and 107 respondents met the criteria for the study. The findings of the study are as follows: The management issues faced by the library staff involved remote work arrangements, online services provided, the need to increase the number of digital resources available, and staff training. The most common issues staff faced were providing remote library services to the user, balancing work and personal life, and attending virtual meetings using various digital platforms. The public library staff dealt with the COVID-19 changes by increasing their hours on remote work, using digital platforms, and making remote work arrangements. Despite the challenges, most participants gained valuable and positive experiences during the pandemic. It can be said that overall, COVID-19 did have an impact on the staff. The results of this study provide valuable insights for library employees, managers, policymakers, and researchers and offer guidance for future pandemic preparedness.

The purpose of the research was to recommend a model for strategic human resource management through an effective staff performance appraisal system in Botswana public libraries. Performance appraisal is not a new concept; however the evolution of performance appraisal tools and techniques has been slow compared to that of other management fields. This discrepancy is now being realised; organisations are starting to acknowledge the importance of comprehensive, regular appraisal of staff as part of an effective human resource management policy. Human resources are a scarce and valuable tool in any organisation and it is mainly through performance appraisal that they can be developed and maintained, to ensure organisational success. The theory underlying strategic human resource management and performance management has been studied. Empirical research through a questionnaire was carried out in 23 public libraries. From these it was possible to develop a model entitled "A recommended strategic human resource management model". From empirical investigation the main critical qualities for efficient public library services were revealed as enthusiasm; positive attitude; innovative thinking; capability and commitment; critical competencies as expertise; team-building; and leadership; critical external factors as external environment; global competition; shrinking budget; changing library customers and employees' needs and information technology; strategic management issues organisational culture; transformational leadership; employee recognition and reward systems; performance measurement system; productivity improvement; and customer orientation; critical staff issues as sense of purpose and achievement; feeling of self-worth; job-security; recognition; status; career development; and salary; motivational factors as effective communication; job satisfaction; delegation of authority; clear job description; performance feedback; conducive working environment; human resource strategy issues as motivation building among staff;continuous education and development; generating competitive advantage through human resources; and alignment of human resource strategy with strategic management plan. The study recommends a strategic human resource management model for libraries along with: conducive working environment; adequate IT infrastructure to store, organise and retrieve information; staff training for excellent customer service; objective, reward based staff appraisal; performance feedback; performance appraisal should be aligned with staff selection, library mission, staff motivation and promotion in order to use it strategically; and human resource strategy should be developed immediately. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

The purpose of the research was to recommend a model for strategic human resource management through an effective staff performance appraisal system in Botswana public libraries. Performance appraisal is not a new concept; however the evolution of performance appraisal tools and techniques has been slow compared to that of other management fields. This discrepancy is now being realised; organisations are starting to acknowledge the importance of comprehensive, regular appraisal of staff as part of an effective human resource management policy. Human resources are a scarce and valuable tool in any organisation and it is mainly through performance appraisal that they can be developed and maintained, to ensure organisational success. The theory underlying strategic human resource management and performance management has been studied. Empirical research through a questionnaire was carried out in 23 public libraries. From these it was possible to develop a model entitled "A recommended strategic human resource management model". From empirical investigation the main critical qualities for efficient public library services were revealed as enthusiasm; positive attitude; innovative thinking; capability and commitment; critical competencies as expertise; team-building; and leadership; critical external factors as external environment; global competition; shrinking budget; changing library customers and employees' needs and information technology; strategic management issues organisational culture; transformational leadership; employee recognition and reward systems; performance measurement system; productivity improvement; and customer orientation; critical staff issues as sense of purpose and achievement; feeling of self-worth; job-security; recognition; status; career development; and salary; motivational factors as effective communication; job satisfaction; delegation of authority; clear job description; performance feedback; conducive working environment; human resource strategy issues as motivation building among staff;continuous education and development; generating competitive advantage through human resources; and alignment of human resource strategy with strategic management plan. The study recommends a strategic human resource management model for libraries along with: conducive working environment; adequate IT infrastructure to store, organise and retrieve information; staff training for excellent customer service; objective, reward based staff appraisal; performance feedback; performance appraisal should be aligned with staff selection, library mission, staff motivation and promotion in order to use it strategically; and human resource strategy should be developed immediately. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

A comparative evaluation framework of instructional interventions for implementation of online training for public library staff would enable a better understanding of how to improve the effectiveness, efficiency and efficacy of training in certain training environments. This dissertation describes a quasi-experimental study of a two-week, asynchronous online training course that was provided at four levels of instructional intervention to public library staff in the United States. The course content addressed the complex issues of difficult patron policy development and situational coping techniques. The objective of the study was to develop and demonstrate a theoretically grounded, evidence-based impact evaluation framework. The framework was used to assess the relative impact of an online course for public librarians at four levels of instructional intervention. The researcher investigated the relationships between the type of e-Training instructional interventions and the short- and long-term impacts on participants' knowledge, self-efficacy, and workplace performance. The study used a longitudinal, quasi-experimental design that included a pretest, posttest and three-month delayed posttest with follow-up survey. 194 participants completed all three phases of the study. The evaluation tools measured course content related knowledge and self-efficacy at all three phases (pretest, posttest, and delayed posttest) and assessed workplace application of training at 3-month follow-up. The results of this study contributed to evaluation theory and learning theory literature applied to the online learning environment and informed public library staff online training practices and evaluation methodologies.

Text in English / The study investigated the usage of Open Access Institutional Repositories (OAIR) in university libraries in Ghana to develop a strategy on how the usage of OAIR in university libraries in Ghana may be enhanced. The study adopted the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which was then modified to fit the study. Accessibility, availability and visibility were proposed in addition to the conventional variables of TAM to improve the fit between the data and the theoretical model. Pragmatism paradigm, mixed methods research approach and convergent parallel mixed method design (survey and case study designs) was used for the study. Simple random sampling, stratified random sampling, purposive sampling techniques and the sample size converter were the sampling procedures and methods employed. A total of nine hundred and ninety-eight (998) respondents completed the questionnaires distributed, but for the qualitative phase twelve (12) OAIR managers were purposively selected. The questionnaire and interview guide were used as research instruments to gather relevant data for the study. Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (multinomial logistic regression and CFA using SEM) were used as statistical tools to analyse quantitative data and thematic analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. The study revealed that there was a low level of OAIR usage in universities among academic staff, notwithstanding the high level of understanding of OAIR. This was evident in the number of research work uploaded onto the OAIR by the OAIR team. Inadequate advocacy, ICT connectivity, infrastructure, funding, power supply, insufficient technological skills, institutional repository policy, absence of incentives, institutional culture and politics and copyright issues were the challenges facing the usage of OAIR in university libraries in Ghana. The study concluded that advocacy, policies, software and staffing enshrined in an institutional guideline on OAIR would enhance OAIR usage. The study developed an OAIR Usage Model and OAIR User Manual, which would be very instrumental in the usage of OAIR in university libraries in Ghana. The model will enhance user satisfaction and intention to reuse the OAIR and making OAIR research outputs available, accessible and visible. The manual specifies the contents and documentsaccepted by the OAIR and ensuring the quality of documents archived. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)