Exploring Librarians’ Digital Competence and Institutional Support as Determinants of Reference Services Delivery in University Libraries in Osun State

Abstract

Reference services are fundamental to academic library operations as they assist users in locating
accurate and relevant information. Traditionally, reference services involved face-to-face
interactions between users and librarians at the reference desk. However, the advancement of
information and communication technologies (ICTs) has transformed reference services into a
blend of physical and virtual interactions. The paper explores librarians’ digital competence and
institutional support as determinants of reference service delivery in university libraries in Osun
State. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. The population consists of 143 academic
librarians in the six (6) purposively selected university libraries. The Total enumeration
technique was employed, and data were collected with a questionnaire from the respondents. The
Data collected was analysed using frequency counts, simple percentages and tables. Findings
revealed that the librarians possessed the required digital competence to be effective at their
work, such digital competences possessed by librarians include identification and use of
computers and other digital devices (laptops, mobile phones, tablets etc) among others.
Furthermore, findings revealed that there is institutional support for the delivery of reference
services n the university libraries, such as librarians attending seminars and the provision of
effective reference services.. Lastly, the findings also indicate a positive influence between
digital competence and institutional support on the effectiveness of reference service delivery in
university libraries, such as the integration of digital tools which has improved the efficiency of
reference service delivery in my library among others. This study concluded that the reference
librarians in university libraries in Osun State have the required digital competence to render effective reference services to library users. This study recommends that reference librarians
should be more proactive and stay up-to-date with emerging technologies related to reference services delivery.