Determinants of Electronic Library Resources Access in Saudi Arabia Higher Institutions

Abstract

Electronic library resources are believed to be recent development in the world of internet. However, access to electronic library resources appears to be lacking, and thus has become a major issue of concern among electronic libraries resources users, particularly the students. As a result, this study investigates the determinants of electronic library resources access in Saudi Arabia higher institutions. Specifically, it examined the relationship between two key variables and electronic library resources among the students of Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University. Cross-sectional survey forms the research design while the population of the study covered all the students in Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University. The sample size was determined using the formula by Tabachnick and Fidell (2001) with a sample of 128. The data collection was conducted using email procedure while the collected quantitative data was analysed using both correlation and regression analysis techniques. The findings revealed that the relationship between electronic library resources availability and electronic library resources access is statistically significant. Also, the finding shows that ease of use is statistically related to electronic library resources access among the students in higher institution. Therefore, the study concludes that electronic library resources availability significantly affects electronic library resources access among the students. Secondly, it is concluded that ease of use has a lot of impacts on the electronic library resources access among the students. The study offers several implications and suggestions for future studies.