Financial information seeking behaviour: A study of Babcock University staff library use habits. By Uloma Doris Onuoha Dept.

of Information Resources School of Education and Humanities Babcock University Ilishan Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria Ud_onu@yahoo.com And Luke Nwaokeonu Onuoha Bursary Division Babcock University Ilishan Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria Lkonu@yahoo.com Abstract This study sought to find out how the staff of Babcock University use the library when seeking financial information. It identifies the information resources utilized, extent to which the library is visited, adequacy of information resources and problems associated with non use of library by university staff. The study was carried out using the descriptive research design. Study population consists of 563 staff members at Babcock University, Nigeria. 200 staff members were selected as sample. Data was collected by means of a structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics. Findings from the study revealed that newspaper and books are the major sources for acquiring financial information; however, this is hardly sourced from the university library as most of the respondents claim they do not go to the library for financial information. It also shows that the major problem encountered by university staff when seeking for financial information in the library is that information is not easily available and current. The study recommends that the university library should embark on a public relations campaign to create awareness of its resources and seek positive image for itself. Keywords: Financial information, information behavior, Information seeking, library use, university libraries

Introduction The university library has traditionally been known as a place for sourcing information as its major objective is to meet the information needs of its user community. The library occupies an important position within the university making it to be described as the academic heart of the university. With its array of information sources which are available in print and electronic formats, little wonder then that information seeking on any area of human endeavour often begins or ends with the library. Wilson (2000) describes information behavior as a general term that entails the totality of human behavior in relation to sources and channels of information, including both active and passive information seeking, and information use. Melicher and Norton (2000) describe finance as the study of how individuals, institutions, and businesses acquire, spend, and manage money and other financial resources. Financial information therefore relates to information that would enable individuals, institutions and businesses make intelligent decisions concerning the management of money and other financial resources. Financial information seeking therefore refers to information behavior on issues related to finance. It entails the need, the sourcing and use of financial information. El-Najjar (2008) affirms the need for a study on financial information seeking by noting that people who dont know what the business people are looking at or why, are at their mercy. It is in line with this that the present study investigates university staff use of library in financial information seeking.

Babcock University Babcock University, located in Ilishan Remo, Ogun State, about 45minutes away from Lagos, along the Sagamu-Benin expressway, was founded as a seminary in 1959 and became a university in 1999. With a current student enrolment of close to 6,000, Babcock University
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employs about 563 (233 teaching and 330 non teaching) staff, with a daytime population of over 9,000 people. Economic life within the university community represents ideally the normal setting for most orderly places in the world, with people undertaking economic activities based on rational considerations.

Objectives of the study The major objective of this study was to determine how university staff utilize the library when seeking for financial information. The study addressed the following research questions: 1 What kind of information resources do university staff consult for the purpose of acquiring financial knowledge? 2 To what extent is the library used as a place of seeking financial information? 3 How adequate are library resources in the provision of financial information? 4 What problems could lead to non use of library for the purpose of seeking financial information?

Literature Review The need for information in todays society cannot be overemphasized as there is little possibility of taking wise decisions without it. It is in view of this that Uttor (1999) notes that data that have been subjected to some processing functions are capable of answering users query whether it is recorded, summarized, or simply collected and would help in decision making. Reliable information is therefore the cornerstone for building the expertise, and practical strategies necessary to improve the world. Financial information deals with all aspects of finance, and
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affects every area of life as Kapoor, Dlabay and Hughes (1999), note that typical financial goals include things such as: a new car, a luxury home, extended travel, self sufficiency during working and retirement years, etc. People need financial information to know how to deal with financial problems whether as individuals, families or organizations. Garman, Leech and Grable (1996) argue that a persons financial knowledge and related attitudes can influence personal financial behaviors with those who are more knowledgeable and those who have better financial attitudes exhibiting better financial decisions than others. Taylor (2006) goes ahead to credit financial literate persons with the ability to use credit responsibly, the confidence to manage their money, understand the long term benefits of savings and a positive attitude towards financial planning. Kapoor, Dlabay and Hughes (1999) proposed a six step financial planning process as follows: determine your current financial situation; develop financial goals; identify alternative courses of action; evaluate alternatives; create and maintain a business plan. All the steps no doubt require information from diverse sources for effective decision making. Holzer and Floyd ( ) argue that there is no reason why individuals should not make knowledge based planning, as they point out of ignorance of where to get information is not an excuse for skipping any step in the financial planning process. The quest for financial information starts with the identification of a need which progresses into formulating of a search strategy. According to Marchionini (1989), the execution of an individuals information-seeking system for a particular information problem is considered an Information-Seeking Strategy (ISS). In the drive to solve financial problems there is the need to develop information seeking strategy. A well designed strategy will examine the problem, and work out the best source of information that will match the need. Leckie, Pettigrew & Sylvain (1996) affirm that information seeking involves personal reasons for seeking
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information, the kinds of information which are being sought, and the ways and sources with which needed information is being sought.

The search for information involves a set of actions that an individual takes to express information needs; seek information; evaluate and select information, and finally use the information to satisfy his/her information needs. It is the purposive seeking for information as a consequence of a need to satisfy a goal. Wilson (2000) notes that in the course of information seeking, individuals may interact with manual information systems (such as a newspaper or a library), or with computer-based systems (such as the Web). Kapoor, Dlabay and Hughes (1999) also note that information can be obtained from financial institutions, school courses, education seminars, financial specialist etc. Information seeking behavior is, therefore, expressed in various forms: from reading printed materials to research and experimentation.

Popoola (2008) argues that the information resources and services available in institutional information systems must be capable of supporting research activities among the students and faculty members. While this is expected bearing in mind that the major objective of the university library is the provision of information resources to meet the research needs of its user community, Taylor (1991) noted that what a user actually needs may not eventually tally with what is practically available due to constraints, either within the stock, or due to the users own inadequacy to access information materials.

Various scholars have researched in the area of information seeking among diverse groups of people, but little has been done in the area of financial information seeking. Among those who
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have studied information seeking behavior, Patitungkho and Deshpande (2005) investigated the Information Seeking Behaviour of Faculty Members of Rajabhat Univeresity in Bangkok and findings from their study showed that the method used by the faculty member for seeking information differs as 53% of the faculty members consulted a knowledgeable person in the field, 41% discussed with colleagues, 39 % discussed with librarians or reference staff of the library, and 35 % used Library catalogue for seeking the information required. Textbooks were also found to be the popular type of information source for most faculty members (57 %) while 15% of faculty members used periodicals. This finding was supported by Brown (1999) who found out that all his respondents (scientists) used textbooks, journals and monographs. Hart (1993) in a similar study also found out that academic staff value colleagues as preferred channel of information, as they were considered familiar, reliable, immediately accessible, inexpensive, and often provide a concise answer synthesizing the available information. Suriya, Sangeetha and Nambi (2004) also carried out a research work on "Information seeking behavior of Faculty Members from Government Arts Colleges in Cuddalore District." The purpose of the study was to investigate how faculty members seek information from the library. The study shows that most of the respondents 61 (38.12 %) visited the library several times a week to meet their information needs. Research methodology The descriptive research design was adopted for the study. The population consisted of 563 teaching and non teaching staff members currently employed at Babcock University. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 200 staff members from the teaching and non teaching departments. A questionnaire tagged Financial Information Seeking Behavior Questionnaire (FISBQ) was used for data collection. The questionnaire was divided into two parts. Part A

sought for demographic information of the respondents while part B sought financial information seeking behavior. Descriptive statistics was employed to analyze the data. The analysis includes the use of frequencies, tables, and percentages.

Presentation and Discussion of Findings A total of 200 copies of the questionnaire were distributed to both the teaching and non teaching staff, out of which 154 were retrieved giving a response rate of 77%. Table 1: In your quest for financial information which sources do you consult? Resources consulted Positive Response No response

F Newspapers Books Colleagues Friends Consultants Business magazines Internet Companies financial statements 125 90 75 70 60 55 50 40

% 81 58 49 45 39 36 32 26

F 29 64 79 84 94 99 104 114

% 19 42 51 55 61 64 68 74

Table 1 reveals that newspapers form the highest source of financial information for staff of universities with 81% (125) of the 154 respondents utilizing it as a source for financial information. This is followed by reading from books with 58% and information provided by colleagues at work place, 49%. Information from friends generally which occurred 70 times
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(45%) came next. Consultants as a source of financial information were next at 39%. Business/financial journals (37%). Other sources of information like internet and companies financial statements scored 32% and 26% respectively. It would appear from the choice and frequency of what they consulted for financial knowledge that the respondents depended mainly on newspaper information which understandably is most available in the various offices and strategic locations on campus. This finding agrees with the findings of Patitungkho and

Deshpande (2005) whose research showed that faculty members differ in their method of seeking information. It also agrees with the findings of Hart (1993) who found that academic staff value colleagues as preferred channel of information as 70 (45%) of the respondents indicated that they consulted friends for financial information. No response rate was high for some of the items such as business magazines, internet and companies financial statements. This could be due to the fact that these media were not commonly available to the respondents or that they do not use them.

Table 2: Do you visit the library when seeking for financial information? Academic staff Yes Frequency % 43 28 No Frequency % 111 72

The second research question sought to find out the use of library in financial information seeking. Out of the to 154 respondents, only 43 (28%) confirmed that they visit the library when seeking for financial information. 72% of all university staff sampled did not visit the library at such times. Inferred from here is the fact that even university staff themselves do not see the library as a strong source for acquiring financial information. This could be as a result of deep

seated belief that most libraries deal with stale reports. This, however, disagrees with the finding of Suriya, Sangeetha and Nambi (2004) which reported that most faculty members visit the library several times a week to meet their information needs. The difference in this finding can also be as a result of the fact that the researchers dealt with general information seeking behavior of academic staff, while this study focuses on financial information seeking behavior. Table 3: Do you find the library adequate in terms of financial information collections? Academic staff Yes Frequency % 21 17 No Frequency % 133 83

The third research question sought to find out the adequacy of library collections in providing financial information. 83% of all university staff sampled said No to the question: do you find the library adequate in terms of financial information collections? Only 21 (17%) affirmed that they find library resources adequate. This is, however, not surprising as majority of the respondents hardly visit the library when seeking for financial information. Table 4: If you do not use the library please indicate why. Statements Information is not easily available Library staff are not helpful The library does not provide current information Library is too noisy 0 Frequency 36 (23%) 13 (8%) 10 (6%)

The last table sought to find out problems associated with library use in financial information seeking. Out of 154 respondents, 36 (23%) indicated that they did not use the library because
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information needed is not always available. 13 (8%) felt that library staff are not helpful and 10 (6%) indicated that the library does not have current information. Considering the fact that the major source of information utilized for financial information is the newspaper which is always available in the library on daily basis, one wonders why the major problem attributed to non use of library for financial information seeking is related to information not being easily available. It is possible that majority of the respondents are not aware of the newspaper collection in the library or that the newspapers are not enough to go round making financial information seekers reluctant to go to the library. Conclusion and Recommendation This study sought to find out the information resources utilized by Babcock University staff, the extent to which the library is used, adequacy and problems associated with non use of library by university staff when seeking for financial information. Findings from the study revealed that newspapers, books, colleagues and friends are mostly utilized by university staff when seeking financial information. It also revealed that the library is not considered as a major provider of financial information as most of the respondents did not visit or use the library when seeking for financial information which also led to the perception that library resources are not adequate in providing financial information. Problems associated with non use of library in financial information seeking centered on the fact that information is not easily available in the library; that library staff are not helpful and that the library does not provide current information. Based on those observations, the following recommendations are made: 1 The university library should embark on publicity / awareness campaign to enlighten the university community and, indeed, other library users of its holdings. This is particularly useful considering the fact that newspapers and books form the major sources of financial information for university staff, yet the library is hardly utilized when these same resources are available in the library.

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2 The university library should also endeavor to make information more easily accessible because where information resources are available and not accessible; they cannot be of use to anybody. Newspapers, for instance, can be placed on strategic points where they can be easily seen by patrons; adequate signage can also be used to direct users to needed information. 3 Library staff should be well trained and willing to offer necessary assistance to users as this will make them feel more comfortable and increase their willingness to use library resources.

References Berman, K., Knight, J., and Case, J. (2006). Financial Intelligence: A Managers Guide to Knowing What the Numbers Really Mean. Massachusetts: Harvard Business School Press Retrieved Nov. 6, 2009from harvardbusiness.org/...financial-intelligence.../6532BCPDF-ENG El-Najjar, A. (2008) The Art of Finance and Why it Matters. Retrieved Nov. 17, 2009 from www.scribd.com/.../Understanding-Financial-Reports-Basic-Course Garman, E. T., Leech, I. E., and Grable, J.E. (1996). The Negative Impact of Employee Poor Personal Financial Behaviors on Employers. Financial Counseling and Planning Vol. 7, pp 157 168. Hart, R.L. (1993). The information-gathering behaviour of the faculty of a four-year state college. Ph.D. Thesis: University of North Carolina. Holzer, B. & Floyd, E. ( ) Set for life: financial peace for people over 50. New York: John Wiley & sons, Inc. Kapoor, J. R., Dlabay, L. R. & Hughes, R. J. (1999). Personal Finance 5th ed. Boston: Irwin McGraw-Hill Leckie, G. J., Pettigrew, K. E., & Sylvain, C. (1996). Modeling the Information Seeking of Professionals, and Lawyers. Library Quarterly, Vol. 66 No.2 pp161-193. Marchionini, G. (1989). Information Seeking Strategies of Novices Using a Full Text Electronic Encyclopedia. Journal of the American Society for Information Science Vol. 40 No. 1 p 54- 66. Melicher, R. W. & Norton, E. A. (2000). Finance: Introduction to Institutions, Investment, and Management 10th ed. Australia: South Western College publishing
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Patitungkho,K and Desphande,N.J. (2005). Information Seeking Behaviour of Faculty Members of Rajabhat Universities in Bangkok. Weblology Vol. 2 No. 4. Retrieved Nov. 18, 2009 from http://www.webology.ir/2005/v2n4/a20.html Popoola, S. O. (2008). The Use of Information Sources and Services and its Effect on the Research Output of Social Scientists in Nigerian Universities. Library Philosophy and Practice. Retrieved Dec. 27, 2009 from: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mbolin/popoola.htm Suriya, M., Sangeetha, G., & Nambi, M. A. (2004). Information-Seeking Behaviour of Faculty Members from Government Arts Colleges in Cuddalore District. In: Kaul, H.K. & Patil, S.K. (Eds), Library and information Networking (NACLIN 2004). New Delhi, 2004, pp. 285-292. Taylor R.S. (1991). Information Use Environment. In Brebda Dervin &Melvin J Voigit(Eds).Progress in Communication Science. Norwood, NJ: Ablex. Taylor, M (2006) Why Financial Literacy is Still Important for All. Retrieved Dec. 27, 2009 fromhttp://www.associatedcontent.com/article/59643/why_financial_literacy_is_still_im portant.html Uttor, J. (1999).The Role of Law Libraries in Democratic Culture. A paper presented at the 1999 NLA National Conference and AGM. Aug 15th-20th. Wilson, T. D. (2000). Human Information Behavior. Information Science, Vol. 3 No. 2 pp 49-55.

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