A study on the utilization of serial resources in selected tertiary institutions in Ogun State

Abstract

Serial resources are publications either in printed form or electronic format issued in successive parts usually having numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely. This study is aimed at investigating how serial collections are being utilized by users of selected tertiary institution libraries in Ogun State. The total population for this study is 1,464 respondents out of which 146 respondents were selected as the study sample representing 10% of the total population. The survey research design was used for the study. The main instrument used for the data collection was a research questionnaire. The findings revealed that among all the available serial resources available in the libraries, newspapers were the most consulted (88.4% of the total respondents) because of their daily publication which makes the users aware of daily happenings in the society. It was also revealed that most users locate needed serial resources by browsing on the shelves/racks at the Serials Section of the libraries. Some recommendations were made which include the need for the provision of enough security personnel for adequate monitoring of the serial materials and other library materials. It was also recommended that authors and stakeholders in education should donate more serial resources and other publications to the libraries so as to enrich their collections and also help to enhance academic performance.

Keywords: Serial resources; Utilization; Tertiary Institutions; Academic performance; Ogun State