The Role Of Social Networks In The Scientific Exchange Of Librarians: A Case Study.
Ansari, Masoumeh ; Shahdadnezhad, Elham ; Khalidian, Mehrdad 等
The Role Of Social Networks In The Scientific Exchange Of Librarians: A Case Study.
Introduction
By increasing the availability of computers and Internet
technology, computer-based learning environments have been expanding
significantly both in higher education and in organizational and
industrial sectors. Meanwhile, educational specialists' and
researchers' attention in the teaching and learning sector has been
increased with regard to the importance of human interaction in the
learning process (Salehi and Safavi 2010). In some ways, it can be
mentioned that the advent of modern communication technologies has
created a fundamental transformation in human interaction and
communication (Sabouri-Khosroshahi and Azargoun 2013). From the onset of
the Internet, it has had a tremendous impact on human life in advanced
societies and developing countries. The interactivity of this medium,
after the advent of the Web, is an important factor in the increasing
the tendency of users toward the Internet. Users in the new era are not
passive consumers and spontaneously generate text and manage content
(Amiri and Abadi 2012, Xanidis and Brignell 2016). Today, using the
Internet is essential for exchanging scientific, economic, cultural, and
political, sports, and news information in different parts of the world
(Moradi et al. 2013). One of the keys to the success of online learning
environments is providing facilities for enhancing teamwork,
participation and sociability of learners (Salehi and Safavi 2010). The
desire of man to being socialized and leaving socially led him to turn
the Internet into a virtual society. This important issue has now
emerged in the structure of virtual social networks by developing a
virtual environment in the form of Web. (2) and creating an interactive
relationship (Aghili and Pouri 2011).
Problem Statement
One of the new consequences of creating communication networks is
virtual social networking (Eslami 2014, Serrat 2017). Virtual social
networks are a new generation of social relationships that have grown
significantly in recent years compared with other media, and have been
able to attract massive and heterogeneous audiences around the world
(Amiri and Abadi 2012). Although these networks are new, they have been
able to open their own place in people lives. Many people, from
different ages and from different social groups, have come together in
virtual social networks, and they are communicating from real-world far
away distances through social networks. The tendency towards social
networking sites around the world is still growing (Serrat 2017, Eslami
2014).
Social networks consist of generally individual or organizational
groups that are interconnect with one or more types of affiliations and,
in the context of a complex information society, depict the effective
functioning of the convergent network, and their growing success and
popularity is due to their social nature (Rahmanzadeh 2012). The origin
of social media is the Web. 2 phenomenon, which provides the necessary
mechanisms through social networking sites to create a new space called
"cyber space" (Khaniki and Babaei 2011). In other words,
social networks are a group of people or organizations with common
interests or interests that come together to achieve specific goals.
Every member is called an actor. The characteristics of social networks
are the existence of complex relationships and interactions between
actors (Asadi 2014, Kratzer et al. 2016).
These networks are created with goals such as the organizing
various types of social groups (relying on common interests and
achieving common goals, often political, social and cultural in the real
world), developing social partnerships, sharing interests, creating
content by members (unlike other media, the interaction and influence of
the audience in the production and selection of arbitrary content is
high and they have the power to choose more) and targeted online
advertising (Eslami 2014). The benefits that social networks have and
have made them popular are as follows: the rapid and free dissemination
of news and information, increased analytical strength and strengthening
the critical spirit (although the possibility of false information
dissemination is high, but the audience can compare information at
various databases and even increase the power of critique and analysis
by the means of this process), the possibility of crossing the
geographical boundaries and familiarity with individuals and other
societies and cultures, the formation and consolidation of collective
wisdom (the collective wisdom is dynamic flow of the thinking of users
in these environments that as a large processor of information,
processes the information, in other words, the power of social
networking users' mind is combined with each other and creates a
great power with high processing power), the possibility of expressing
ideas freely and familiarity with the ideas, thoughts and tastes of
others, the ability to send feedback and collaboration and
synchronization of users and participation in discussions (unlike the
traditional media that produce and send content, is social networks,
discussion is possible and the flow of communication is two-way, the
propaganda and content usability, continuous virtual communication
(social networks make the scope of communications wider) (Lee, Song, and
Yang 2016), advertising and expanding human and moral values in the
world, integration of many Internet and Web resources (social networks
by providing facilities such as creating personal pages, making blogs,
searching the Internet, getting information about events and news,
engaging in conversation spaces like chat, and loading files has
integrated the facilities of various databases), developing
community-based social partnerships, speeding up the education process,
and establishing round-the-clock communication between teacher and
student, increasing trust, civility and integrity in cyberspace
(Soleimani-Pour 2000).
Necessity And Research Background
Researchers consider social network as a key factor in
understanding the process of creating knowledge, and they believe that
due to the nature of sharing and creating knowledge in social networks,
the focus of organizations has been attracted to them (Rezaei-Nour et
al. 2014). In general, the characteristics of social networks have made
it possible that using their facilities among organizations and groups;
become a competitive advantage and a tool for advancement. One of the
organizations that due to its organizational nature and function, needs
to improve the scientific-information interaction, is library.
Libraries, like other organizations and as a learning organization, can
use the features of this tool to create a scientific network between
librarians in order to benefit from their facilities and benefits to
improve the providing services and information. Therefore, in this
research, the role of social networks in the scientific exchange of
librarians has been used and in order to carry out a relatively
comprehensive study, librarians working in public libraries of Kerman
province have been considered and investigated.
Considering the importance and position of social networks in the
creation and consolidation of scientific communication, in different
researches in Iran and abroad (Sultana and Momen 2017, Karno and
Bilodeau 2016, Grant and Grant 2016, V arotto et al. 2016, Hollander et
al. 2016, Forbush and Foucault-Welles 2016, Kaya and Bicen 2016, Grace
2016, Newell et al. 2016, Brady, Holcomb, and Smith 2010, Ellison,
Steinfield, and Lampe 2007, Yates and Paquette 2011, Young and Quan-
Haase 2009, Knobel and Lankshear 2008, Ghaffari et al. 2017, Pourabbasi
et al. 2017, Newman 2001, 2004), the importance of social networks and
their broad functions in the field of scientific communication has been
addressed.
Method
This descriptive survey research is an applied one and it was
conducted in the spring of 2017 on librarians working in public
libraries of Kerman province. The criteria for entering the study were
employment at the public libraries of Kerman province. The tool used was
the standard questionnaire "The role of social networks in the
scientific exchange of librarians", that its reliability was
measured as 0.82 by using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. The
research community was librarians working in the public libraries of
Kerman province, whose number was determined by 125 people and were
surveyed by census method. The questionnaires were distributed,
completed and received by librarians in the spring of 2017 by the
information expert. The data were analyzed by SPSS software version 21,
independent t-test and one way ANOVA.
Descriptive statistics (frequency (absolute, relative), central
indices (mean) and dispersion indices (range of variation and standard
deviation) and inferential statistics (independent and one way ANOVA)
were used to analyze the data. One- way variance analysis was used to
investigate the relationship between the role of social networks in the
academic exchanges of librarians in public libraries of Kerman province
with gender and academic discipline, independent t-test, with education,
age, membership history in different social networks, the rate of use of
social networks per day, and the level of computer skills,. The score of
the role of social networks in the scientific exchanges of librarians in
public libraries of Kerman province, based on scale 0 to 25, was
classified into three weak (0-8.33), moderate (8.33-16.67) and good
(16.67-25) levels.
Findings
The information listed in Table 1 shows that most of the
participants in the study were female with 73/60 percent, and the
minority of the study was men with 26/40 percent. The mean age of the
participants in the study was 34/31 years; the highest age was 43 and
the lowest was 25, and the age group of 30-35 years old had the most
participant in the study. The education level of majority of students
was B.A. with 60%, and high school diploma with 4.4 percent was the
lowest. The highest membership history in social networks are 1 to 2
years old (28%), the highest usage rate was 1 to 2 hours per day
(55.20%), the most popular social network was Telegram (49.60%) and
computer skills of most participants (67.02%) was moderate.
According to Table 1, the mean score of the role of social networks
in the scientific exchanges of male librarians (14.78%) was higher than
that of women (13.66%). In the variable of education, the highest was
associate degree (15.44%) and the lowest was high school diploma with
(10.79%); in the age variable, the 25-30 (15.34%) was highest and 40-35
(12.59%) was the lowest, in the field of study variable, Librarianship
and information science (14.05%) obtained the highest average score of
the role of social networks in the scientific exchanges of librarians.
After doing one-way ANOVA, there was a meaningful relationship among the
role of social networks in scientific exchanges and education level (p=
0.025), age (p =0.006), membership in different social networks (p=
0.000) and the use of networks (based on hour(s)) (p= 0/000) but there
was no significant relationship between the role of social networks in
scientific exchanges, field of study and computer skills level there was
no significant relationship. The results of using independent t-test
showed that the role of social networks in the academic exchanges of
librarians with their gender is not meaningful.
According to Table 2, the component "Applicability" with
3.2, the component "effect on main organization" with 2.93,
the component "benefits of use" with 2.76, the component
"knowledge upgrade" with 2.71 and the component "effects
on individual life" with 2.49 got the highest and lowest range of
mean scores, respectively. The highest score was related to the
"applicability" component with a score of 3.2 and the lowest
score was related to the component of "impact on individual
scientific life" with a score of 2.49. The average score for the
role of social networks in the scientific exchanges of librarians was
measured as 13.11; therefore, the role of social networks in the
academic exchanges of librarians in public libraries of Kerman province
with a score of 13.91 out of 25 were estimated at the
"average" level.
Discussion And Conclusion
As already mentioned, virtual social networks are one of the
consequences of creating communication networks (Eslami 2014, Serrat
2017), that with their dramatic growth, have been able to attract
countless audiences around the world (Amiri and Abadi 2012). The
presence of these networks has led to multiple and diverse opportunities
and challenges that one of the most important events that is jointly
categorized among the opportunities and challenges is creating
interactions and exchanges of information, concepts and knowledge among
individuals, groups and organizations. Sometimes these scientific
exchanges are called "scientific network".
According to the findings of this study, 22.4% (28 people) of
librarians considered the role of social networks high in scientific
exchanges. Seventy four point four percent (93) of librarians mentioned
the role of social networks in the "average" level, and 3.2%
(4 people) indicated the lack of this role. Therefore, it can be said
that social networks play a "moderate" role in the scientific
exchanges of librarians in public libraries of Kerman province, that
according to the previous studies, the spread of social networks usage
in the world and the developments in this field and, on the other hand,
the importance of existence informational cooperation networks, as well
as librarians and informants as experts in this field (Ovadia 2014),
seems to be unacceptable.
Contrary to the present study, which confirms the moderate role of
social networks in the academic exchanges of librarians, studies that
have been conducted have reported similar or conflicting results. The
findings of Bozorgy and Amini (2015), as in this study, pointed to the
moderate role of social networks in the academic exchanges of librarians
at Tehran's public universities (Bozorgi and Amini 2015).
Mirzai's et al. (2016) research showed that the role of social
networks is weak in scientific exchanges between graduate students of
Razi University (Mirzaei, Rahimi, and Moradi 2016) and In Zarei and
Bayat researche, despite the importance of networks in achieving
academic goals, the low efficiency of social networks in public
universities was reported (Zareie and Bayat 2015).
Some studies in this area indicate the high role of social networks
in academic exchanges. In 2001, Newman acknowledged the existence of
strong scientific exchanges among computer science and biology, physics
and mathematics researchers (Newman 2004). In his 2016 study, Ansari
also explored the role of scientific exchanges derived from social
networks in library and information services and highlighted this role
(Ansari and Nazim 2016).
The findings of the studying the research population showed that
the highest rate of social networks sing is 1 to 2 hours per day
(55.20%). Mirzai et al. (2016) also explored the role of social networks
in academic exchanges between graduate students at Razi University and
concluded that the highest use of social networks is more than an hour
per day (Mirzaei, Rahimi, and Moradi 2016). In the case of the most
popular social network in Mirzai's et al. (2016) research as
current research, the most popular social network was telegram (Mirzaei,
Rahimi, and Moradi 2016).
In this research, the mean score of the role of social networks in
the scientific exchanges of male librarians (14.78) was higher than that
of female (13.66) that in Ansari's (2016) research, the similar
result of the role of social networks was reported in academic exchanges
in the field of library and information science (Ansari and Nazim 2016).
According to the results of this study, the 25-30 year olds (15.34)
scored the highest average score of social networks' role in the
academic exchanges of librarians and in Ansari's (2016) study, the
participant in of 26-35 age group had the highest mean score. In the
present research, like the Bozorgy and Amini's (2015) study, the
components of the role of social networks in scientific exchanges,
" applicability", "the impact on the main
organization," "the benefits of using networks,
"knowledge enhancement " and "impact on individual's
scientific life, were estimated at an average level(Bozorgi and Amini
2015).
According to the scores obtained from the components studied
("applicability", "impact on main organization",
"advantages of using networks", "knowledge
enhancement" and "impact on individual scientific life")
among librarians under study, it seems that a limited number of
librarians are aware of the benefits of using social networks in the
library and information centers and the role of social networks in their
scientific development and the relevant organization. Perhaps this is
due to their lack of information literacy about social networks or the
lack of being updated and validity of information available on social
networks. Given the benefits of social networking in the field of
creating interactions, service and information in libraries and
information centers, and the prevalence of using this tool among people,
it is desirable that by using social networks in a controlled and
targeted way by librarians, in order to facilitate and expedite the
provision of services in this area to group of users in the public
libraries of city in particular the libraries covered by the public
libraries of Kerman, steady and forward-looking steps have to be taken.
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Masoumeh Ansari
--Scientometrics and Publication Center, Kurdistan University of
Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.--Department of Medical Library and
Information Sciences, Faculty of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti
University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran., masomehansari@gmail.com
Elham Shahdadnezhad
--Expert of information science, public library of
fatemeh-al-Zahra, Institution of public libraries of the country,
Kerman, Iran., elhamShahdadnej ad@gmail.com
Mehrdad Khalidian
Personal System Center, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences,
Sanandaj, Iran., maolod@gmail.com
Maryam Poorsani
Department of Medical Library and Information Sciences, Faculty of
Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,
Tehran, Iran., poorsani.m@gmail.com
Masoumeh Ansari(masomehansari@smail.com)
--Scientometrics and Publication Center, Kurdistan University of
Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.
--Department of Medical Library and Information Sciences, Faculty
of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,
Tehran, Iran.
* Elham Shahdadnezhad(elhamShahdadneiad@smail.com)
--Expert of information science, public library of
fatemeh-al-Zahra, Institution of public libraries of the country,
Kerman, Iran.
Mehrdad Khalidian(maolod@smail.com)
--Personal System Center, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences,
Sanandaj, Iran.
Maryam Poorsani(poorsani.m@smail.com)
--Department of Medical Library and Information Science, School of
Allied Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,
Tehran, Iran
Masoumeh Ansari (1,2), Elham Shahdadnezhad (1,2,3), Mehrdad
Khalidian (4), Maryam Poorsani (5)
(1.) Scientometrics and Publication Center, Kurdistan University of
Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.
(2.) Department of Medical Library and Information Sciences,
Faculty of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical
Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
(3.) Expert of information science, public library of
fatemeh-al-Zahra, Institution ofpublic libraries of the country, Kerman,
Iran
(4.) Personal System Center, Kurdistan University of Medical
Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.
(5.) Department of Medical Library and Information Science, School
of Allied Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical
Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Table 1: Comparing Mean and determining the Relationship between
"Dimensions of the Role of Social Networking in the scientific
Exchange of Librarians" with Demographic Characteristics of the
Students
Variable Name Number Dimensions of
(percent) the role of
social networks
in the
scientific
exchanges of
librarians
Applicability
The mean (SD)
Gender female 92(73.6%) 2.98(0.7)
male 33(26.4%) 3.13(0.74)
Education High school diploma 5(4%) 2.50(0.87)
(degree) Associate Degree 14(11.2%) 3.28(0.6)
BA 75(60%) 2.97(0.72)
MA 31(24.8%) 3.09(0.7)
Age 25-30 29(23.2%) 3.23(0.75)
30-35 49(39.2%) 3.05(0.69)
35-40 40(32 %) 2.77(0.67)
40-45 7(5.6%) 3.29(0.7)
Librarianship 69(55.2%) 3.08(0.66)
Field of Study Other 56(44.8%) 2.95(0.77)
Membership Less than 6 months 34(27.2%) 3.44(0.63)
history in 6-12 months 23(18.4%) 2.84(0.71)
different 1 -2 year (s) 35(28%) 3.00(0.71)
social networks 2-3 years 18(14.4%) 2.85(0.66)
Less than 3 years 15(12%) 2.58(0.52)
Using social 1-2 69(55.2%) 3.32(0.6)
networks in 2-3 38(30.4%) 2.74(0.59)
a day (hours) 3-4 15(12%) 2.32(0.75)
Less than 4 3(2.4%) 3.20(0.78)
Computer Low 11(8.8%) 3.27(0.72)
skills level Moderate 84(67.2%) 3.04(0.68)
High 30(24%) 2.88(0.78)
Variable Name Dimensions of
the role of
social networks
in the
scientific
exchanges of
librarians
Knowledge
enhancement
Gender female 2.65(0.63)
male 2.89(0.75)
Education High school diploma 1.87(0.43)
(degree) Associate Degree 2.96(0.50)
BA 2.69(0.72)
MA 2.78(0.56)
Age 25-30 3.00(0.82)
30-35 2.70(0.65)
35-40 2.51(0.51)
40-45 2.76(0.59)
Librarianship 2.75(0.65)
Field of Study Other 2.67(0.70)
Membership Less than 6 months 3.01(0.69)
history in 6-12 months 2.64(0.59)
different 1 -2 year (s) 2.74(0.7)
social networks 2-3 years 2.39(0.67)
Less than 3 years 2.46(0.36)
Using social 1-2 2.87(0.67)
networks in 2-3 2.65(0.57)
a day (hours) 3-4 2.03(0.48)
Less than 4 3.22(0.38)
Computer Low 2.7(0.75)
skills level Moderate 2.67(0.65)
High 2.84(0.7)
Variable Name Dimensions of
the role of
social networks
in the
scientific
exchanges of
librarians
Advantages
of using
Gender female 2.68(0.72)
male 2.99(0.79)
Education High school diploma 2.19(0.61)
(degree) Associate Degree 3.06(0.71)
BA 2.68(0.75)
MA 2.94(0.72)
Age 25-30 3.06(0.76)
30-35 2.83(0.68)
35-40 2.43(0.72)
40-45 3.01(0.76)
Librarianship 2.78(0.75)
Field of Study Other 2.75(0.75)
Membership Less than 6 months 3.16(0.73)
history in 6-12 months 2.58(0.65)
different 1 -2 year (s) 2.83(0.63)
social networks 2-3 years 2.35(0.99)
Less than 3 years 2.48(0.4)
Using social 1-2 2.93(0.83)
networks in 2-3 2.68(0.48)
a day (hours) 3-4 2.13(0.55)
Less than 4 3.13(0.64)
Computer Low 2.87(0.63)
skills level Moderate 2.73(0.77)
High 2.81(0.75)
Variable Name Dimensions of
the role of
social networks
in the
scientific
exchanges of
librarians
Impact on
individual
scientific life
Gender female 2.43(0.64)
male 2.66(0.89)
Education High school diploma 1.84(0.52)
(degree) Associate Degree 2.7(0.71)
BA 2.43(0.75)
MA 2.63(0.61)
Age 25-30 2.78(0.85)
30-35 2.54(0.68)
35-40 2.22(0.58)
40-45 2.49(0.77)
Librarianship 2.51(0.72)
Field of Study Other 2.46(0.72)
Membership Less than 6 months 2.84(0.74)
history in 6-12 months 2.28(0.56)
different 1 -2 year (s) 2.55(0.72)
social networks 2-3 years 2.26(0.81)
Less than 3 years 2.14(0.4)
Using social 1-2 2.68(0.77)
networks in 2-3 2.44(0.51)
a day (hours) 3-4 1.74(0.35)
Less than 4 2.4(0.62)
Computer Low 2.46(0.62)
skills level Moderate 2.45(0.73)
High 2.6(0.73)
Variable Name Dimensions of The Role of
the role of Social
social networks Networks in
in the Academic
scientific
exchanges of
librarians
Influence on Exchanges
main
organization
Gender female 2.86(0.87) 13.6(3.12)
male 3.11(0.93) 14.78(3.8)
Education High school diploma 2.4(1.22) 10.79(3.47)
(degree) Associate Degree 3.43(0.62) 15.44(2.8)
BA 2.79(0.93) 13.57(3.47)
MA 3.1(0.74) 14.54(2.82)
Age 25-30 3.27(0.91) 15.34(3.78)
30-35 2.9(0.85) 14.02(3.13)
35-40 2.66(0.87) 12.59(2.94)
40-45 3.17(0.83) 14.72(2.67)
Librarianship 2.93(0.89) 14.05(3.27)
Field of Study Other 2.92(0.89) 13.74(3.45)
Membership Less than 6 months 3.41(0.77) 15.87(3.13)
history in 6-12 months 2.59(0.78) 12.94(2.81)
different 1 -2 year (s) 2.92(1) 14.04(3.33)
social networks 2-3 years 2.7(0.91) 12.55(3.83)
Less than 3 years 2.62(0.54) 12.28(1.57)
Using social 1-2 3.28(0.83) 15.08(3.27)
networks in 2-3 2.59(0.7) 13.09(2.47)
a day (hours) 3-4 2.09(0.81) 10.32(2.71)
Less than 4 3.28(0.25) 15.24(2.31)
Computer Low 2.8(0.84) 14.11(3.07)
skills level Moderate 2.99(0.89) 13.88(3.33)
High 2.79(0.92) 13.92(3.57)
Variable Name P value
Gender female 0.080
male
Education High school diploma 0.025
(degree) Associate Degree
BA
MA
Age 25-30 0.006
30-35
35-40
40-45
Librarianship 0.613
Field of Study Other
Membership Less than 6 months 0.000
history in 6-12 months
different 1 -2 year (s)
social networks 2-3 years
Less than 3 years
Using social 1-2 0.000
networks in 2-3
a day (hours) 3-4
Less than 4
Computer Low 0.977
skills level Moderate
High
Table 2: Descriptive statistics related to the "dimensions of the
role of social networks in the scientific exchange of librarians"
No. Dimensions of the role of social Mumber Minimum
networks scores
1 Applicability 125 1.11
2 Knowledge enhancement 125 1.22
3 Advantages of using 125 1.27
4 Impact on individual scientific 125 1.10
life
5 Influence on main organization 125 1.17
Total 125 6.13
No. Dimensions of the role of social Maximum Mean SD
networks scores
1 Applicability 4.22 3.02 0.71
2 Knowledge enhancement 4.22 2.71 0.67
3 Advantages of using 4.27 2.76 0.75
4 Impact on individual scientific 4.20 2.49 0.72
life
5 Influence on main organization 4.67 2.93 0.89
Total 20.66 13.91 3.34
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