Building digital libraries in Bangladesh: A developing country perspective

This paper describes the ways used to build digital libraries in Bangladesh as well as the problems that might be encountered during digital library system development. It shows the existing status of digital library development, particularly the status of digitization in Bangladesh as well as government initiatives to build digital library system. Finally, several steps are proposed by the author for one possible approach to build an effective digital library system.     

Digital government transformation as an organizational response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Many public organizations struggle to adapt to digital transformation. Whereas previous research has identified internal drivers of change, an unpredictable factor from the external environment such as the COVID-19 pandemic can trigger public innovation. In this study, we aim to investigate if and how the COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the digital government transformation. In more detail, we explore how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected different organizational aspects that are expected to be affected by a digital transformation. Findings from case studies of ten organizations from the Austrian federal administration indicate that the pandemic has not only led to an increased use of technological means but also influenced various organizational aspects such as employees' attitudes toward technology and organizational culture toward innovation. In particular, organizations heavily affected by the pandemic have benefited from a greater degree of digital transformation. Consequently, the pandemic has influenced a spirit of innovation and accelerated the speed of digital transformation.     

Transformation of libraries during Covid-19 pandemic: A systematic review

PurposeThis study analyze academic library services during Covid-19 pandemic (2020 and 2021), as well as the challenges they face, emerging library roles, and the most effective communication tools.MethodA systematic review of the relevant literature was undertaken following PRISMA guidelines. The relevant literature was retrieved from four major scholarly databases (Scopus, Web of Science, Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA), and Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA)). The relevant 23 studies were included fulfilling inclusion criteria. A quality assessment of the included studies was also performed.FindingsThe findings revealed that Covid-19 pandemic is certainly effecting and transforming libraries, their services and management. The library services during Covid-19 pandemic, their fundamental challenges, emerging roles, and available preferable communications tools are the categories in this study to better understand the pandemic-transformation.ImplicationsThe practical and policy implications are that libraries must establish infrastructure and improve accessibility in order to provide the best possible support to modern library users who access resources remotely in this rapidly evolving digital environment. Organizational policymakers and library directors should prepare emergency and disaster management plans. The libraries should ensure their presence on social media and make use of their library websites.     

COVID-19 impact on the Chinese top academic libraries: Libraries' response to space,collection and services

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was a major public health emergency on a global scale. The literature regarding the pandemic and its impact on academic libraries is still rising. This article examines the two-year process of developing a flexible service scenario and the broader picture by analyzing data on Chinese top university libraries' programmes and outreach initiatives prior to, during, and the normal COVID-19 pandemic (Sept. 2019–Sept. 2021). COVID-19 is found to have a significant impact on the physical space, collection development, and service of the library, demonstrating the characteristics of space access restricted by security measures, collection digitization, and online service. This research also examines the previous year's initiatives and programmes and discusses the next phase of “new normal” procedures. Hopefully, this study will give insight on how Chinese libraries responded to the recent pandemic, informing libraries' outreach and efforts to be better prepared to take imperative, swift, and decisive action in the post-COVID-19 era and beyond.     

Expedited editorial decision in COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic and its resultant lockdowns have interrupted the way scientists live and work. This nevertheless caused an unforeseen impact of COVID-19: the pandemic substantially increased editorial speed. Here, we causally identify the impact of the pandemic on the editorial decision time, based on a quasi-experimental regression discontinuity (RD) design that compares (N = 339,199) papers submitted in the lead-up to and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that editors make acceptance decisions significantly quicker after the pandemic, reducing the editorial decision time of revised papers by 8.9 days on average. The pandemic, however, has unequal impacts on editors. The results reveal a larger reduction in editorial decision time for editors of high-tier journals, in the field of social science, or with busy work schedules. Finally, our findings also allude to the potential for the increase of editorial speed, and will stimulate policy changes in scientific enterprises that strive for accelerated publishing.     

Advances in digital library initiatives: a developing country perspective

The paper focuses on the digital library initiatives in India with examples, the initiatives of the government of India and state governments towards digital library activities, and the policy of the Government of India towards digital library development. The current initiatives, such as the INDEST Consortia, are described in detail. The challenges facing digital libraries, the problems being encountered while developing digital libraries, the problems of the digital divide facing the country are mentioned.     

Interlibrary loan and document delivery in North American health sciences libraries during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective:The study purpose was to understand how early months of the COVID-19 pandemic altered interlibrary loan (ILL) and document delivery (DD) in North American health science libraries (HSLs), specifically the decision-making and workflow adjustments associated with accessing their own collections and obtaining content not available via ILL.Methods:Researchers distributed an online 26-question survey through 24 health science library email lists from January 6-February 7, 2021. Respondents reported their library''s ILL and DD activities from March-August 2020, including ILL/DD usage and policies, collection access, decision-making, and workflow adjustments. In addition to calculating frequencies, cross-tabulation and statistical tests were performed to test a priori potential associations. Two researchers independently and thematically analyzed responses to the 2 open-ended questions and reached consensus on themes.Results:Hospital libraries represented 52% (n=226/431) of respondents, along with 42% academic (n=179) and 6% (n=26) multi-type or other special. Only 1% (n=5) closed completely with no remote services, but many, 45% (n=194), ceased ILL of print materials. More than half (n=246/423; 58%) agreed that ILL requests likely to be filled from print remained unfilled more than is typical. Open-ended questions yielded 5 themes on ILL/DD staffing, setup, and systems; 6 on impacts for libraries and library users.Conclusion:Lack of communication regarding collection availability and staffing resulted in delayed or unfilled requests. Hospital and academic libraries made similar decisions about continuing services but reported different experiences in areas such as purchasing digital content. Hybrid ILL/DD workflows may continue for managing these services.     

Breaking the chain: Governmental frugal innovation in Kerala to combat the COVID-19 pandemic

As the COVID-19 pandemic causes unprecedented disruptions in citizens' lives and work, prompting a wide range of responses from governments across the globe. The southern Indian state of Kerala, India's COVID-19 “ground zero”, stands out with a fatality rate at a fraction of other richer Indian states and countries. This has happened despite the state presenting strong vulnerabilities to COVID-19. Using the theoretical lens of frugal innovation, I analyse how the Kerala State Government (KSG) combated the spread of COVID-19. This research uncovers the mechanisms at play as KSG implemented and used frugal technologies as platforms that helped decision making and strategy to fight the pandemic. I find a rich interplay of frugal innovations promoted by the government, in partnership with research institutes and private sector actors, which are cheap and efficacious. The study defines and promotes the concept of government frugal innovation (GFI) and provides valuable insights and tools to help governments navigate and effectively respond to this crisis, encouraging the rest of the world to learn from Kerala's experience. My conceptual model characterizes GFI as involving collaborative aspects, and holds practical implications beyond the times of crises.     

Academic library spaces and student activities during the COVID-19 pandemic

A library in higher education plays a primary role in students' learning on campus. In addition to individually-focused studying, students come to a library for various purposes, such as group learning, collaborating, and socializing. To support students' different types of learning, appropriate physical and functional environments of the spaces must be provided. However, the environmental effects of learning spaces have not been explored extensively. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced students to remain and study at home for extended periods, and it is expected that the pandemic experience has affected students' space use patterns. This study aims to examine the effect of the pandemic on students' library usage and to investigate the necessary environments to effectively support students' learning activities. Data was collected via interviews with 12 students. One of the main findings is that, even though students used the library less during the pandemic, they expected to use it as much as pre-pandemic or even more after the pandemic. Furthermore, both physical and functional environments were associated with the study performance and wellbeing of the students. Therefore, understanding students' learning activities and preferred environments in a library is critical to providing appropriate spaces supporting students' learning performance and wellbeing.     

Remaking academic library services in Zimbabwe in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic

The outbreak of the global COVID -19 pandemic has affected all aspects of life, access to higher education has not been out of danger as evidenced by the enforcement of official closures, enforcement lockdown and social distancing rules by governments throughout the world. However, while the COVID-19 pandemic has presented the world with numerous socioeconomic challenges, it has also helped to spur creativity and information as evidenced by the responses of academic libraries that have seen a heighted use of digital platforms to support education, teaching and research. The study sought to establish how librarians in Zimbabwe responded to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the implications of the pandemic on library service delivery. A qualitative research was adopted for the study. Using snowballing, interviews were used to gather data beginning with the library association's branch leadership. The researchers ensured that the questions were aligned to the research objectives. The interview schedule included open and closed questions to enable participants to provide further details relating to the phenomenon under study. The participants were guaranteed their rights to consent, privacy and anonymity in the introduction of the interview schedule. An The study reveals that there has been an increase in the use online platforms for accessing information especially library's webpages, electronic books and journals. The use of library online resources from distance locations also rose following closure of campuses. Library patrons' perceptions towards electronic resources significantly improved as they realized that they were equally useful as the print. Findings from the study provide useful recommendation on how librarians can remodel their services to match new demands presented by the COVD-19 pandemic. The study provides a starting point upon which further research on the effect of COVID-19 or other similar pandemics have on library service delivery.     

Local governments' use of social media during the COVID-19 pandemic: The case of Portugal

While the use of social media by local governments has gained relevance in recent years, crises are critical situations that reinforce the need to reach citizens to disclose information, demonstrate the government's commitment, and increase the citizens' level of preparedness and awareness of resources. This paper examines the factors that influenced local governments' e-disclosure during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. To accomplish this objective, we systematically tracked every post published by the official Facebook page of 304 Portuguese municipalities between March 2 and July 5, 2020. The findings show that financial autonomy is the main predictor of e-disclosure, factors varied on the different phases of the pandemic's first wave, and sociodemographic factors became more prevalent as explanatory factors when the crisis worsened. Our study may help increase the level of preparedness during possible future crises. In particular, establishing communication strategies for prolonged public health crises, making financial resources available for the accomplishment of such strategies, and reducing the digital divide can contribute to more effective disclosure. Future research should explore the dynamics of disclosure during public health crises. This study also highlights the need to incorporate time in research that focuses on the determinants of e-disclosure that could also be tested in normal times.     

COVID-19 Evidence Reviews website: a VA effort to catalog and curate COVID-19 evidence reviews

Background:The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a wave of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 research that organizations around the world have been synthesizing in evidence reviews to provide high-quality evidence to support policymakers and clinicians. The urgency of these efforts opens these organizations to the risk of duplicated efforts, which could waste valuable time and resources.Case Presentation:The VA Evidence Synthesis Program (VA ESP) formed a COVID Response Team that launched an online catalog of COVID-19 evidence reviews in March 2020 (https://www.covid19reviews.org/). The goal of this website is to capture the work of evidence synthesis groups in the US and around the world to maximize their collective contributions to patients, frontline clinicians, researchers, and policymakers during the COVID-19 pandemic and avoid duplicating efforts.Conclusions:This ongoing and evolving project provides a helpful catalog of evidence reviews at various stages of production; in addition, the website provides further value with informational icons, review collections, and links to similar resources. The VA ESP will maintain this website to continue to support the needs of policymakers, clinicians, and researchers both within the VA and around the world throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.     

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on gendered research productivity and its correlates

Female researchers may have experienced more difficulties than their male counterparts since the COVID-19 outbreak because of gendered housework and childcare. To test it, we constructed a unique dataset that connects 15,280,382 scholarly publications and their 11,828,866 authors retrieved from Microsoft Academic Graph data between 2016 and 2020 to various national characteristics from LinkedIn, Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, and Covid-19 Community Mobility Reports from Google. Using the dataset, this study estimated how much the proportion of female authors in academic journals on a global scale changed in 2020 (net of recent yearly trends). We observed a decrease in research productivity for female researchers in 2020, mostly as first authors, followed by last author position. We also identified various factors that amplified the gender gap by dividing the authors’ backgrounds into individual, organizational and national characteristics. Female researchers were more vulnerable when they were in their mid-career, affiliated to the least influential organizations, and more importantly from less gender-equal countries with higher mortality and restricted mobility as a result of COVID-19. Our findings suggest that female researchers were not necessarily excluded from but were marginalized in research since the COVID-19 outbreak and we discuss its policy implications.     

A framework for shared leadership: A perspective on strategic planning for academic libraries

Strategic planning is frequently dismissed by employees because it does not seem to result in any real change or impact in the library. The failure of strategic planning processes can be attributed to a lack of shared leadership. Shared leadership encourages the development of strategic thinking, problem solving, dialogue, and shared vision, all of which are required for a successful strategic planning process. This article discusses the development of shared leadership and its impact on planning.     

Plantwise knowledge bank: delivering plant health information to developing country users

The Plantwise knowledge bank is an open access, online resource that provides information to users involved in plant health systems in the developing world. The challenge was to deliver dependable information that could serve users with widely differing needs and understanding and to get actionable knowledge to subsistence farmers in particular. This was met by bringing together resources across CABI, particularly by supplementing core publishing capabilities with the knowledge, skills and understanding of the internationally based scientific staff and their network of collaborators. An iterative development process, with scoping, wireframes and prototype delivery, was undertaken with constant feedback from global users. Content needed to be repurposed from CABI's own databases, brought in from international partners and freshly created, and then delivered to each user in a structure that was easy to navigate and had easy‐to‐use tools to add value. The product has been widely well received and ongoing development will be guided by lessons learned and new requirements as the Plantwise programme expands.