Implications of digital innovations for academic libraries amidst the Covid-19 pandemic

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore the implications of digital innovation for academic libraries amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic which resulted in the shutdown of a significant number of sectors in the economy, including an institution such as the library. Hence, in the situation where the physical academic library is inaccessible, librarians are required to consider other innovative means of meeting the immediate information needs of library users in the comfort of their homes. Thus, bringing about the proliferation of digital innovations in the contemporary society. The study adopted a conceptual review method which was based on previous/contemporary researches by employing various databases to draw conclusions that it is only via the adoption of digital innovations that librarians can effectively meet the immediate information needs of library users amidst the imposed lockdown. A wide range of sources were consulted to ensure a broad and balanced review. These include published academic works, book chapters, academic journals and conference papers. Digital innovations have the ability to engage librarians and library users with information resources (such as electronic references, e-books, online data sets, multimedia contents, specialized scholarly websites, bibliographies, answers to inquiries, and so on) without the constraint of geographical locations, hence both librarians and library users are required to acknowledge its relevance in order
to maintain their individual research processes.