A Study of undergraduates’ intention to use online library services during COVID -19 Pandemic: a quantitative study

Abstract

Most of the universities in the world changed their teaching & learning strategies into online mode due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation. With this background, students enrolled in universities for 2019/2020 academic year commenced their academic programs via online. During this pandemic period, university libraries are providing their services via online to support the teaching and learning process. However, unlike senior undergraduates, new entrants do not have any experience on academic library services. Therefore, it is important to study whether the new entrants to the faculty of Science are using library online services for their learning process or not. Thus, the main aim of this study was to identify the factors influencing new entrants’ usage of online library services. Data were collected through an online questionnaire based on a survey performed among 588 new entrants of the Faculty of Science, University of Peradeniya. The model was tested using path analysis with multiple regression techniques. Findings indicated that majority of new entrants accessed the library website and past papers. In addition, utilizing soft copies of text books and documents delivery services received higher percentages. Perceived usefulness was found to be a direct significant determinant of new entrants’ behavioural intention of online library services acceptance and visibility had a strong effect on perceived usefulness compared to other determinants. Based on the results, it is recommended that the library management should focus on providing more relevant information resources and services via online. Furthermore, programs should be conducted to improve the students efficacy level of accessing online library resources and services in order to enhance their usage.