Use of Social Media by Librarians for Professional Development and Service Delivery in University of Uyo, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated the use of social media by librarians in the University of Uyo for professional development and library service delivery. Survey research design was adopted for the study. A total population of 83 professional and paraprofessional librarians were used for the study. A census study was carried out and data was collected using a questionnaire. A response rate of 96.4% was obtained. Percentages and Frequency counts were used for the data analysis. Findings from the study revealed that the most popular social media tools used by librarians include; Facebook, instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and WhatsApp. It was also revealed that University of Uyo librarians make use of social media to meet their professional development needs such as; information about emerging technologies in LIS, information about upcoming conferences, call for papers for scholarly publications among others. They also make use of social media to meet the information needs of their clienteles such as selective dissemination of information, current awareness services, reference services etc. Inadequate ICT facilities, technophobia and unverified information sources were some of the challenges faced while using social media. The study recommended among other things that awareness and trainings should be carried out for librarians on ways of using social media for professional development and library service delivery. The study also recommended that librarians need to explore more recent social media platforms for their professional development and library service delivery