Information-seeking behaviour of Crops Research Scientists in Ghana

Abstract

The study investigated the information-seeking behaviour of crops research scientists in Ghana using the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Crops Research Institute (CSIR-CRI), Kumasi, Ghana as the case study. The study was aimed at ascertaining how the crop research scientists seek information in terms of what information sources they use, type, when, where and the purpose for which they use information as well as how they  search for information. Wilson’s Information Behaviour Model was adopted as the theoretical framework for the study. The researcher employed a questionnaire to collect data from 73 scientists of the Institute, while three (3) Library staff were interviewed on their approach to meeting the information needs of the scientists.  The study revealed that the crop research scientists used information centres/libraries for research purposes and prefer to use journals articles (both print/electronic) but preferred electronic format to other types of materials. The study also revealed that scientists used scientific meetings as part of information sources.  The study recommended that scientific information centres/libraries should subscribe to current print/electronic journals and also train the crop research scientists in information searching and retrieval skills.

Keywords: Information seeking behaviour, crop research scientists, scientific information, information dissemination, information sources, Ghana.