Evaluating the Librarian’s Role in Organizing Knowledge at University Libraries in Nairobi County

Abstract

Purpose: It has long been recognized in several sectors that librarians can enhance the efficacy and operational efficiency of knowledge management. Previous research has primarily relied on cross-sectional data projecting that university libraries still need to acknowledge the worth of the role of librarians in managing knowledge.  The problem addressed is the gaps in knowledge organization in university libraries. The study was built on the premise of the Role Theory and the Adaptive Structural Theory, with the objective being to evaluate the librarian’s role in organizing knowledge at university libraries in Nairobi County.

Methodology: This study used the descriptive survey research design targeting 2180 individuals, consisting of librarian section heads and information science students, who were identified across the two institutions. A sample size of 338 respondents was sampled from this population to take part in the research process. The research used two different sampling techniques. The first technique was the simple random sample method used when selecting the students who participated in the study. The second sampling technique was the censor method, which chose the librarians to participate in the study. Data was collected using questionnaires and interview schedules. This comprised 314 students currently enrolled at TUK and UON in the School of Information Science and twelve librarian section heads from each university. The content validity was attained by selecting the questionnaire measuring items from the operational framework. The quantitative data collected was analyzed using version 26 of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Consequently, a frequency distribution was also employed to analyze the quantitative data obtained during the research.

Results: This showed how often each value occurs in a data set, mainly the mean, median, and mode measures of central tendency. The collected results showed that librarians have the most influence on knowledge management at these institutions. These individuals are essentially responsible for enhancing literacy skills among library users.

Conclusions: The research found that librarians at the university libraries in Nairobi County were essential to the organization of knowledge management. To guarantee the best learning outcomes, it was recommended that these librarians must still create classification systems, allow access to information resources, curate collections, and encourage users to be effectively information literate.