Assessment of user preference to information resources in agricultural libraries in north India

Abstract

Through a survey, this study assesses the preference of users with regard to print and electronic information resources in agricultural libraries of north India and to identify the preferred mode of access thereof. The required data were collected, employing questionnaires and through telephonic surveys. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used for analysing the data. The level of association between the user preference and the corresponding variable was derived through Chi Squared (χ²) Test. It is found that the users of agricultural libraries in north India use information resources almost equally both in print and electronic forms, although online resources are favored over print as they are ‘easy to search and retrieve’, ‘easy and quick to access’ and ‘more up-to-date’ than their print counterparts.