Analysing information needs and information seeking behaviour of members of Catholic Religious Institutes in the Archdiocese of Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

The aim of the study was to analyze the information needs and information seeking behaviour of members of the Catholic Religious Institutes (CRIs) in the Archdiocese of Nairobi. Survey method was adopted for the study. The study population consisted of priests, religious brothers and sisters in the Archdiocese of Nairobi. A total of 95 members of CRIs participated in the study. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaires and interview schedules. The major findings of the study were that members of the CRIs faced various challenges that inhibited effective access and use of information. The following recommendations were made based on the research findings that is; the CRIs directors should support training of their staff in library and information science in order to improve the provision of services through qualified staff, those CRIs which do not have internet connectivity should connect the internet to the libraries to enable their members access electronic resources, they should also adopt easier ways such as WI-FI in providing internet services to their members, the CRIs should provide diverse collection to their members other than religious information materials, the CRIs directors should recognize the role of library in the members apostolate and give support in building library infrastructure, and finally creation of awareness of availability of electronic resources among CRIs members to enable them utilize the available resources.