An evaluation of the use of electronic databases by academic institutions

Abstract

The study sought to evaluate the use of electronic databases in academic institutions. A case study was done for Catholic University of Eastern Africa. The main focus for the study was to investigate the level of awareness of the electronic databases among the community in academic institutions, investigate the extent and purpose of use, find out the challenges encountered in the use of electronic resources and also find out who actually uses the electronic databases in academic institutions and for what purpose are the electronic resources being used. It also set out to investigate the relationship between the use of electronic databases and the computing skills of the patrons. Relationship between the training on the use of the electronic databases and the level of use was also investigated. A survey was done through a questionnaire which was submitted to academic staff and postgraduate students. The sample comprised of 40% (60 out of 148) of the academic staff and 40% (73 out of 182) of the postgraduate students. The study revealed that there is high awareness (94%) of the electronic databases subscription by the CUEA community; the extent of use is average (65%). Majority of the users were the postgraduate students. Challenges experienced include; lack of connectivity, slow internet connectivity, lack of personal computers and password problems.