DEPARTMENT OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE FACULTY OF EDUCATION

FEDERAL UNIVERSITY DUTSINMA KATSINA STATE

LECTURE NOTES

COURSE CODE:
LIS 121
COURSE TITLE:
INFORMATION USERS

COURSE UNITS:
THREE
COURSE LECTURER:
IBRAHIM MOHAMMED
&
SIRAJO ABUBAKAR DANZANGI

JANUARY, 2024
 COURSE SYNOPSIS
 Concept of Information
 Information User
 Characteristics of information users
 Concept of Information sources
 Concept of Information resources
 Information Needs
 Concept of Information Seeking Behaviour (ISB)
 Information and Information Users/Customers in the Digital Age
CONCEPT INFORMATION
Information can be described as the outcome of a process data. Data on the other hand, are raw
facts and figures that have not been processed. Information can also be said to be data that has
been processed, interpreted and understood by the recipient. This means that, for data to be usable,
it must be processed. Information has been defined by different authors in various ways.
Information is also defined as any form of communication that is useful and understandable
knowledge for the recipient. This in essence means that, information is a processed data that has
value and capable of helping the recipients to make decisions. Therefore, for information to be
useful and well understood it must be communicated in a language that is understood by the
recipients and it must be relevant for a particular purpose. Information can be defined as a data
that have been processed so that they are meaningful. This requires a process that is used to
produce information which involves collecting data and subjecting them to a transformation
process in order to create information. Some examples of information include a sales forecast or
financial statement”. Hence, for information to be of good quality, it must possess some
characteristics.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD INFORMATION

The following are some characteristics of valuable information
Availability
Information must be suitable and ready for use. This implies that, information must be made
available and accessible to the right users.
Accessibility
This means that, the right users must be able to use the right information at the right time and
place.
Accuracy
Information should be accurate and free from errors or mistakes. Accurate information will enable
the recipient or user to make good decision.
Timeliness
Information must be available to the user at the right time and in the right format.
Security
Information must be secured or kept safe from unauthorised users and ensure access to authorised
users.
Completeness
Information must be complete in order to meet the needs of the recipient. Completeness of
information means that information should contain the necessary data or details required by the
user. Incomplete information may affect decision making.
Conciseness
Information should express much meaning in few words, clear, succinct and unambiguous.
Flexibility
Information must be flexible in order that it can be use for various purposes.

Objectivity
Information should be free from bias. It must be factual,reliable and deals with the truth.
Reliability
Information is reliable when it emanates from a credible or trustworthy source.
Understandable
Information is valuable when it is well understood by the user. Therefore, information should be
written in a language that is easilyunderstood by the recipient.
Timeliness
Information must reach the recipients within the prescribed timeframes. For effective decision-making,
information must reach the decision-maker at the right time, i.e. recipients must get information when
they need it. A delay in delivering information to the recipient destroys the value of such information.
The characteristic of timeliness should also include up-to-datedness, i.e. current information.
Accuracy
Information should be accurate, that is, information should be free from mistakes. Wrong information
given to management would result in wrong decisions.
Relevance
Information is said to be relevant if it answers especially for the recipient what, why, where, when, who
and why? In other words, the system producing the information should serve reports to managers which
are useful and the information helps them to make decisions.
Adequacy
Information required for decision-making processes must be sufficient in quantity. Inadequacy of
information leads to crises, information overload results in chaos.
Completeness
The information which is given to a manager must be complete and should meet all his needs. Incomplete
information may result in wrong decisions and thus may prove costly to an organization.
Explicitness
A report is said to be of good quality if it does not require further analysis by the recipients for decision
making.

TYPES OF INFORMATION

The following are the types of information;

 Conceptual information
 Empirical information
 Procedural information
 Stimulatory information
 Policy information
 Directive information
 Classified information

Conceptual information:
This refers to information which is based on ideas, concepts, theories, and hypotheses that show
the relationship that exist among variablesin a particular area of study.
Empirical Information:
These are information obtained by means of observation, experimentation, and literature search. It is
usually based on scientific background.
Procedural Information:
This refers to the method that allows the researchers or investigators to work better. Procedural
information enables the collection, manipulation, testing and analyses of data.
Stimulatory Information
This refers to information that motivates people andthis information emanates from people and the
environment.

Policy Information
This refers to information that is use for decision making process. It involves the pictorial,
diagram description of objectives, goals, responsibilities and functions.

INFORMATION USER TYPES AND CHARACTERISTICS

TYPES OF INFORMATION USER

Information user varies according to the types of libraries. For example, in school library setting,
the information users or library users include pupil, secondary school students and teachers. In
public libraries, there users are made up of children, farmers, literates, retirees, housewives etc.
The following are the types of users in library

Students
Students are the most important and number one users of academic library. The main purpose of
the academic library is to acquire information resources in various formats to meet the needs of
the students. In polytechnics, colleges, and universities, students constitute the largest number of
users of the library. They comprises of pre-degree, undergraduate, and postgraduate studentss. In
order to keep up with their academic pursuit, these students constantly use the library for various
purpose ranging from reading light materials, working on their assignments, reading for exams,
borrowing library materials and literature search in order to advance their knowledge.

Lecturers/Teachers
These are another set of information users in academic libraries. Their objective is to impart
knowledge and good values on students. Hence, they need various information resources in order
to achieve their goal. They carry out independent research and contribute their intellectuals to the
university repository and the society in general.

Researchers
These are professional scholars who have degrees in their various subject fields. These set of
people carryout research on a daily basis in order to proffer solution to societal problems and to
contribute knowledge to theirrespective fields. Because of their constant need of information, they
visitacademic libraries in order to have access to information resources and services.

Faculty Members
These are management staff members of the university and they need information resources for
decision making and for solving problems within the university environment. Hence, they visit the
library to get needed information and services.

Administrative Staff
These constitute staff members that are involved in the day to day running of the university. These
set of information users need information for various reasons ranging from relaxation, education,
consultation etc. Sometimes, they use the library’s resources to enhance their skills and
competencies.
Different authors in library and information science field have categorised information users based
on the types of services they need. Ranganathan categorised information users based on the
services they need. In his case, he categorised information users into;
Freshman
This refers to as fresher or a new member of the library. The fresher is introduced to the library and
its services and how to he/she can find information resources such as books depending upon
his/her reading interests.
Ordinary Inquirer
This refers to a normal person that request for library resources such as book, and services.
Specialist Inquirer
This refers to a user that specialises in a particular subject area.
General Reader
This is an information user that is not included in the above aforementioned group.
Ranganathan recommended different types of services that will meet the information needs of the
user which ranges from initiation or orientation, ready reference service, long range reference and
general help to general readers.

CHARACTERISTICS OF INFORMATION USERS

Information users are individuals or persons who have the right to use the library’s resources. The
following are some of the individual characteristics of library users;
Age
This is a factor that helps identify the reading ability of a user. It also explains how the user access and
use information.
Personality
This is a characteristic of users that determine the user reading ability and the extent of use of
information.
Nature of Job or Occupation
The nature of job or occupation of information users will determine the volume and types of
information materials they require. For example, an engineer will request for information
resources relating to engineering field.
Level of Education
The level of education of information users will also determine the kind and format of information
resources they need and their ability to appropriate put the needed information into good use.
Subject Area of Interest
This is another characteristic of information users that determine their ability to access and use
information. Many information users most of the time use resources relating to their subject field
or area.

CONCEPT OF INFORMATION SOURCES

An information source is any source which communicates formally or informally ideas, facts, data
of human activities and events witnessed or heard from a person about the existence of something
or provide knowledge about it to another person or group of persons. The information sources are
classified in many ways by different authorsas you can see below:
Classification of Information Sources
The information has been classified into various categories based on nature, originality sometimes
the frequency of their production by information specialistsand professionals
Information sources are classified under the following categories;
 According to their physical nature
 Based on the originality of the information
 Based on their format of production

Classification of Information Sources by their Physical Nature

Information sources can be classified according to their physical nature namely; documentary
and non-documentary.
 Documentary source
There are records of thoughts which are produced on paper or recorded on other
materials for present and future use by anybody seeking such information. These
are examples of documentary sources books, periodicals, microforms, tape
records and photographs.
 Non-documentary Sources
These are unrecorded sources of information which include live chats with
colleagues, visitors, the participant’s in seminars, conference, information
centres; government establishments, departments etc.

Classification of Information Sources by the Originality of the Information Information

sources can be classified based on the originality of the informationsuch as primary, secondary and
tertiary information sources.

 Primary Sources:

These are first-hand information or original materials which have not been
interpreted, summarized, analyzed or evaluated by a second party or person.
Some of the examples of primary sources are interviews, a report by
somebody who witnessed an event; letters, periodicals, conference
proceedings diaries and research work by a person
 Secondary Sources:
A secondary source is information that is derived or gotten from the primary
or original information. The secondary information source is a modified,
summarized, reported information from an original or a witnessed source
(person) for a defined purpose or audience. Some of the examples of
secondary information sources are textbooks, reviewed articles,
bibliography to a primary source and indexes use in locating a primary
sourceof information.
 Tertiary:
These consist of information derived from the collection of primary and
secondary sources of information. These information sources sometimes are
summaries of information derived from primary and secondary sources.
Examples of tertiary sources of information are abstracts, handbooks,
bibliographies, encyclopedias, almanacs, indexes etc.
Classification of Information Sources by Format of Production
Information sources can also be classified based on their format of production namely print and
electronic sources (Non- Printed) sources. The electronic or non- printed sources can also be
referred to as soft copies of information sources.
i. Print Sources:
The sources of information which appear in print format are known as
print sources. These sources are printed using computers, printers and
typewriters to produce these hard copies (print sources) examples are
textbooks, newspapers, reference books, journals and diaries, etc.
ii. Electronic Sources
Are online, electric or digital media sources which contain information
that can be accessed, read and viewed with the help of information
communication technology devices. Some examples of electronic
sources are databases, websites, electronic journals, electronic books,
magnetic tapes, CD- ROMs

CONCEPT OF INFORMATION RESOURCES

Information is reporting a given situation or event which will add knowledge to anyone who
accesses and uses it. Information resources are defined as a medium or platforms through which
information can be received. Information resources are also defined as all forms of information
carriers which can be used in promoting and encouraging effective research activities and
developmental projects by an information user.

Various Types of Information Resources

Types of information resources you as an information user can access to satisfy your information
needs are

 Journal
 The Web
 Books
 Thesis
 Encyclopedias
 Database
 The Library Catalogue
 Social Media handles etc

Journal
Journal is a collection of articles written by different authors in an academic field or global topics
which must pass through an editorial board reviews before such articles are accepted to be
published as a journal article. In some of the journal publication fees are not charged but some
journal charges money from the author/authors of an article for reviewing and publication. You
can use journal articles in reading and writing of literature review in research work. Also, you can
use the journal articles in writing assignments and further reading on topics of your interest. The
most recent research findings are published in journals.
The Web
The Web is another source of information which gives information users access to information
on the internet through the use of the internet browser. The information on the web can appear
as sounds, video, images and plain text. The internet provides current information to anybody
who needs information and knows how to access the needed information.
Books
Books contain topics, facts or fiction which is read by their users to find information, arguments
and opinions of other people. Books can book be in printed format or electronic format. Some of
the textbooks produced in the printed format are accompanied by electronic copies in CDs to
read with the useof computer devices.
Thesis
The thesis is a primary source of information because it provides the result of research output.
Most of these theses are current and original research produced yearly by final year students in
and undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in higher institution of learning globally. You
will be expected to write your thesis (Project work) before you graduate
Encyclopedias
Encyclopedias are collections of factual write up written by authors who are specialist in that
particular discipline or topic. Encyclopedias are divided into two general and subject. General
encyclopedias treat different concepts without emphasis on a particular discipline or subject while
subject encyclopedias treat in details topics in a particular field of study or subject like an
encyclopedia of Library and Information science, encyclopedia of Nursing, Encyclopedia of
Medicine.
Database
The database contains information and citations of books, magazines, journals and newspapers
which are accessed with the use of the internet, computer devices and mobile devices. Some of
these databases have full- text and summaries of a book, journal articles. Examples of databases
are Ebscohost, Hinari, Agora, GoogleScholar and ScienceDirect.
The Library Catalogue
The library catalogue is a collection of all the library holdings. What are the library holdings? It is
all the resources which the library which is aimed at satisfying the information needs the library
users. The Library catalogue keeps a record of all the information resources and provides a record
for each item in library collection which points to you where you can locate the information
resources in the library. The library catalogue may be online on the library home page or offline
(Library Catalogue cabinet) in the library.
Social Media
This is another useful information resource which helps in providing information for users of the
information for research, entertainment and interpersonal communication with friends. Social
media like WhatsApp, Zoom and Telegram can be used for teaching and learning academic work
by professionals and students. You can access and upload current research, employment, set up a
professional profile and obtain the latest news using the social media platform

CONCEPT OF INFORMATION NEEDS

Information needs is a condition in which certain information contributes to the achievement of
genuine or legitimate information purpose. Information needs is based on users’ analysis, why they
are interested in a particular information, what they will use the information for. Information need
is the starting point for information seeking. It is only when you have the desire for information to
solve one problem or the other that you search or seek for solution to it. The information you
gathered will help you in solving the existing problem. Information needs is also defined as
searching performed by an individual to satisfy his physiological (shelter during rainfall), affective
(watching of entertained by a movie for two hours) and cognitive needs (to solve a school
assignment). In summary, Information needs can be defined as the desire, urge for an individual to
seek for sources or resources that can help him solve his immediate and personal problems.
Therefore your information need depends on the circumstance or situation you find yourself.

The information needs of any user determine where to search for information. The sources of the
information where primary, secondary and tertiary sources are based on the problems you want to
solve. This information sources direct you to the type of resources that can contain such information.
If you discover the right and needed information from an information source and resource, it will
affect your rate use and extent of utilization of such resources and source.
Information needs determine the extent of utilization of information sources and resources above
all the awareness of the existence of the source and resources plays a vital role in the use of the
information in satisfying one's information needs. Here the roles of librarians and information
scientists are needed in creating awareness to users of the information on the availability of
information organised for them.
Classification of Information Needs
Information needs have been classified into different levels by different authors. Below are some
classifications of information needs.
Information needs is classified into the following categories:
a) Social or Pragmatic Information Needs: This an Information needed in
carrying outday to day life activities.
b) Recreation Information Needs: This the Information meant for satisfying the
recreational andcultural interests of an individual.
c) Professional Information Needs: This is an Information required for
business andprofessional environment.
d) Educational Information Needs: Information required for satisfying
academic programs.
e) Present or immediate need; or
f) Future or deferred or potential need.

FACTORS AFFECTING INFORMATION NEEDS

Information needs can be affected by factors such as social factors, individual characteristic and
family factors. The information needs of an individual can be affected by the following factors
namely
1. Age:
The age range of an individual determines the information need of such a person. A
child who is 10 year will not desire information on how to write an undergraduate
thesis. Gender,
2. Educational qualification:
Your educational exposure affects the type ofinformation needs you will desire.
3. The social, political and economic system
Surrounding and the positions of an individual in the society affect s the person’s
information needs. A farmer needs information on agriculture while politicians are
more interested inpolitics.
4. Teaching and research experience:
Market women will not have information need on how to pass accreditation of
courses in higher institution learning but Lecturers/ faculty and authorities in the
higher institution will need such information.
5. Family background, motivation, professional orientation, also affects the type of
information needs.
6. Information sources available also affects your information needs.
CONCEPT OF INFORMATION SEEKING BEHAVIOUR

Information seeking is a conscious effort to acquire information in response to a need or gap in

one’s knowledge. Information seeking and behaviour are intertwined or interwoven. In the process
of seeking information passive and purposive behaviours are demonstrated. Information seeking
behaviour therefore can be said to be the way people search for and utilize information.
Information seeking according is a cognitive problem solving process that dynamic and
changeable in terms of individual differences. The difference in the ways people seek information
may be due to context, the person’s inner processes, information habits, needs, cognitive abilities,
learning outcomes and personality traits. Individual needs, demands, feeling of stress, uncertainty,
frustration, anxiety, insecurity, ability, cognitive style etc tend to mediate and moderate the nature
of Information seeking behaviour of the individuals. Information seeking does not always imply a
purposeful activity, but can also take place unintentionally. Information messages are
communicated to society in every possible way ranging from logos, billboard, fliers, electronic
messages, verbal messages, print to satellite transmission of events. Information may therefore be
internalized unintentionally and retrieved when needed. Information seeking behavior is
concerned with the interactive utilization of the three basic resources namely, people, information
and system. Information seeking behavior is therefore a totality of human behavior in relation
to sources and channels of information. Information seeking behavior is a process where people
search information and utilize the same to complete their assigned task. This cognitive process
involves a set of actions ranging from identifying ones information needs, seeking the needed
information, evaluating and selecting relevant information and finally using it.
Dimensions of Personality Traits of Information Seekers
These are otherwise called predictors of information seeking behaviours. These include
Neuroticism, Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Openness, and Agreeableness. They are also
known as.
Neuroticism:
This personality dimension has to do with emotional information processing. Anxiety-driven
information seekers are often frantic, and their actions are triggered by an emotional goal such as
finding calm from the worries, intrusive thoughts and concerns that trouble their minds. In most
cases, knowing more brings comfort, reassurance, hope or relief. For this category of people, new
information may stir up additional discomfort. In some cases depression may set in creating
indifference, passivity and information avoidance. In work or study contexts neurotivism may
sometimes focus and energize information seeking. At too high levels, however, it may interfere
with task completion and disrupt concentration. Negative affectivity or neurotivism may also
impact on cognitive aspects of information interaction such that neutral messages are interpreted
as negative andprofound memory structures for troubling experiences are developed.
Extraversion:
For extroverts, information seeking is often a form of social interaction. They frequently find
information through discussion with others, such as friends, family, peers, superiors or teachers.
In addition the extroverts are enthusiastic and spontaneous in information searches. Extroverts
often have a task-oriented, practical approach to information seeking, as opposed to introverts,
who tend to be more analytical and reflective. Extroverted persons are typically friendly, social
and lively, as well as adventurous, assertive and straightforward. Introverts may be described as
less talkative, reserved, less curious, shy and unsociable.
Conscientiousness:
Information seeking involves both the mental processes (cognition) and the emotion. A
conscientious person is goal oriented therefore his emotions are adjusted and directed into
finding the sought information. Such a person takes pride in accomplishments that lead one
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forward towards the goal rather than simply enjoyingthe search process in itself.

Openness:
Information seekers who are open often find the very process of discovering and encountering
new information delightful. Naturally, conscientiousness and openness to seeking information
are hardly opposites, and a person may be both conscientious and open. In which case the person
can enjoy boththe ongoing exploration of new information and the contentment of reaching a goal
Agreeableness:
This is a personality dimension that is most strongly related to trust as against critical evaluation of
information. Agreeable persons tend to create and sustain harmony. They are benevolent and
trusting, and therefore rely on others’ good intentions. This attitude is also reflected in their
information behavior as they tend to be accepting of the information they encounter. On the other
hand persons with low agreeableness tend to be disbelieving, skeptical and demanding in their
general attitude towards life as well as in their conception of information. Such an attitude may be
problematic overall, but has some advantages in an information-seeking context. Competitive
persons often find it easy to evaluate information critically, and are seldom caught off guard by
misinformation. While agreeable persons are said to be cooperative information seekers.
Competitive persons do not generally accept help in their search process even when it would be
needed. They also tend to be impatient information seekers, expecting immediate results on their
quests, while agreeable persons would be more tolerant and accommodating. Also the different
manifestations of information seeking behaviour can be categorized into three namely, physical,
cognitive and affective behaviour.

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FATORS AFFECTING INFORMATION SEEKING BEHAVIOUR
Below are the factors that can affect information seeking behavior these are:

 Availability of information sources in the library/information center

 Out datedness of information sources;
 Lack of awareness about the available information sources;
 Search strategies/individual information seeking styles;
 Information scattering in too many sources;
 Lack of knowledge about information retrieving techniques;
 Non-supportive behavior of library/information center staff;
 Lack of infrastructure like computers, Internet connection, etc.;
 Negative outcome of information seeking process;
 Time available to conduct a search;
 The task or objective for which information is required.

Other difficulties or barriers being faced by the users in seeking needed information, which may
also affect their information seeking behavior are:
 Users do not know what information is available around them.
 They have difficulty in determining the quality, credibility, and accuracy of the
information.
 The information they seek is too hard to find.
 They are unable to compare across information alternatives.
 They lack sufficient training

Procedures or Ways of seeking Information

Library users seek information in different circumstances using various sources. Information
seeking is a process involving activities such as identifying, searching, using and transferring
information. There six major activities or ways in formation seeking. These are:
 Starting — This is when you begin the information search,
 Chaining — This is a backward or forwards activity as you following references in
initial information sources
 Browsing – This is a semi-directed search
 Differentiating — This involves the filtering and selection of sources based on
judgments of quality and relevance
 Monitoring — at this point you maintain awareness of developments/trends
 Extracting — Involves systematic extraction of information from sources.

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 INFORMATION AND INFORMATION USERS INTHE DIGITAL AGE

Concept of the Digital Age

Digital Age in the 21st century is characterized by the advent of information technologies to create,
collate, manage, manipulate, store and share information regardless of time and space. The
importance of information cannot be overemphasized as it cut across all spheres of human
endeavors and professions. However, the difference between the advanced countries and the
developing countries lies in their informationawareness, access, and use.

Functions of a Digital Age Based Library Services.

There are many functions of a digital library. Below are the functions according to Atram (2017)

 Acquisition and budget

Preparing budget for the digital age based library has been automated. Acquiring of resources can
also be done online as well as delivery provide all the resources are on-line.

 Cataloguing
Cataloguing is the process of maintaining bibliographic and authority records in the library.
Resources that can be catalogued includes, books, serials, sound recording, moving images,
computer files, e-resources etc.

 Circulation
Circulation department can also be referred to as a lending department. This department / desk is
usually found at the entrance of the library and it provides lending services or return of loaned
resources.
 Serial Control

Serial control simply refers to the entire process of obtaining materials sold on subscription basis,
including periodicals, newspapers, yearbooks, transactions and proceedings. In many libraries,
Placement of orders in most libraries is centralized

 OPAC

Digital age based libraries are exposed to OPAC- Online Public Access Catalogue. This is an
electronic database of materials held by a library or group of libraries. The users search the library
catalogue to locate books and other resources.

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Benefits of Digital Age Based Library

 It saves time of service providers

The time of both the users and the library personnel are saved in the sense that the result of the
query is solved quickly with the use of digital age equipment.

 It takes small space to save the information

Digital age equipment doesn’t require much space at all but rather everything is inbuilt in small
devices as storage. The use of flash drives, CD’s and hard drives has made storage of information
easy and requires just a shelve space thereby creating more room for other activities in the library.

 It saves the energy and resources

With the advent of digital age library, the energy of the staff is saved in the sense that he/she is not
walking around to deliver or collect memos/mails but rather it can be sent and received through
the internet. The resources of the library is also saved in the sense that making enquiries or
traveling to get things delivered or can be done via mail or atelephone.

It helps to control the information

Digital age introduced the world to so much information that most times it takes a library
professional to sieve the information and bring out what is genuine. There are journal and sites on
the internet that only publish what is genuine.

MAJOR CHALLENGES OF A DIGITAL LIBRARY

Funding:

Funding is the availability of money. Funding can be regarded as a challenge when it is not
sufficient to buy the equipment that a digital age library needs. A digital age library needs money
to train staff on the newskill, money is required to hire the personnel that will put the staff through and
lastly money is required for purchasing digital age equipment like modern computers, printers, fax
machines and a whole bunch of other things.

IT Infrastructure

IT Infrastructure includes both skilled staff as well as digital equipment. The absence of both
causes a huge challenge to the library, its users and the institution at large. IT infrastructure can
pose as a challenge when it is insufficient or non-existent.

Lack of commitment from staff

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Lack of staff commitment of staff can arise when the staff are not satisfied or the institution is
neglecting the staff. Non commitment of staff can stand as a challenge because if they are
committed they will not be able to deliver their services very well.

Unavailability of African generated resources

Most libraries are equipped with foreign resources and that is not good enough. Most times when
users need African resources, they are faced with a challenge. Digital age libraries are supposed to
have both foreign resources as well as African generated resources. Foreigners had the foresight to
store resources digitally but Africans didn’t have the foresight or privilege to do so, hence the
absence of African resources.

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