International Students' Perception of Library Services and Information Resources in Chinese Academic Libraries

• Published in: The Journal of academic librarianship 2013-03, Vol.39 (2), p.129-137
• Main Authors: Nzivo, Charles N., Chuanfu, Chen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic Libraries; China; College Students; Colleges & universities; Communication. Information transfer; Exact sciences and technology; Foreign Countries; Foreign Students; Information and communication sciences; Information science. Documentation; Information service management; Information Sources; International students; Library and documentation centre management; Library and information science. General aspects; Library Services; Perceptions; Quality of service; Sciences and techniques of general use; Student Attitudes; Universities; User Needs (Information); User perception; User service management; User services; Wuhan University
• ISSN: 0099-1333; 1879-1999
• DOI: 10.1016/j.acalib.2012.11.004

With the growth of international student enrollment in Chinese universities, user perception has become an area of developing research in academic libraries. China's policy of opening up has led to the education and economic reforms allowing major universities to enroll international students. These changes have created an increasing need for libraries to be responsive to the information needs of these students. In order to serve these students better, universities will be expected to further understand how academic library services are currently perceived by international students. This is particularly the case at Wuhan University, which has experienced significant growth in international student enrollment. This study aims to discover the met and unmet needs as well as barriers encountered in library use by international students. Based on the information gathered, recommendations and future strategies will be formulated to improve the understanding of the information needs of non-native Chinese speakers in both the provision of services and the building of collections. The findings of this study reveal that Chinese academic libraries are considerably well perceived by international students. It also indicates that they have differing purposes, and differing needs for library services and information resources. This paper acknowledges that the study is limited to Wuhan University; however, there is a need for further studies on non-Chinese speakers, particularly, international students to obtain important information on their perception of library services and information resources.