The Role of Academic Social Media in Enhancing Collaborative Research Activities of Library and Information Science Educators in Nigerian Universities

Abstract

The study examined the role of academic social media (ASM) in enhancing collaborative research activities of library and information science educators (LISE) in Nigerian universities. The objectives of the study were to determine the perception of LISE on the use of ASM in enhancing collaborative research activities, identify the types of ASM used for collaborative research activities, and the level of use of ASM in enhancing collaborative research activities. The study adopted a survey research method and qualitative research design respectively. The population of the study was 348 LISE in 37 university-based Federal, State, and Private library schools in Nigeria. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of 258 LISE selected from 28 library and information science schools in Nigerian universities through a multi-stage sampling technique such as cluster and random samplings. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentages, and mean scores. The findings from the study revealed that Research gate was the most utilized ASM for enhancing collaborative research activities by respondents. The findings equally revealed that most respondents did not utilize ASM as a medium to co-author with colleagues abroad and in other disciplines. The study concluded that LISE in Nigerian universities does not utilize ASM as a medium to co-author with colleagues abroad and in other disciplines, because they may not have contacted these researchers using ASM for co-authoring. The study recommended that LISE should endeavor to familiarise themselves with other social media platforms to enhance their collaborative research activities.