Integrated library system (ILS) and service delivery in federal university libraries in South-South, Nigeria

This study examined the influence of integrated library system (ILS) and library service delivery in federal university libraries in South-South, Nigeria. One research objective with corresponding research question and hypothesis were answered and tested respectively in the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted. The population for the study consisted of the entire 108 librarians drawn from the eight federal universities in South-South Nigeria. The sample consisted of the entire population of 108 librarians from the eight federal universities under study, all of whom were purposively sampled. Of the 108 copies administered, 90 were successfully retrieved, representing a response rate of 83 percent and an attrition rate of 17 percent. Data were collected using a researcher-structured questionnaire entitled “Integrated Library System and Library Service Delivery Questionnaire (ILSLSDQ)”. Data gathered from the trial test were analysed using Cronbach's alpha statistics, yielding a reliability coefficient of 0.81, which was considered adequate for data collection. Data collected were analysed using simple linear regression to answer the research question and F-test statistics to test the null hypothesis at the 0.05 level of significance. The analysis was conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25. The finding of the study revealed that ILS significantly influences library service delivery in federal university libraries in South-South, Nigeria. The study concluded that the Integrated Library System is a necessary technological innovation that could help improve cataloguing, circulation, acquisitions, patron management, and information retrieval processes in university libraries. The study recommended among other things that management of federal university libraries should strengthen the deployment and maintenance of integrated library systems by ensuring regular software updates, technical support and adequate funding.