ABSTRACT
This research was carried out to investigate the utilization of open access resources by academic librarians for academic productivity in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigeria. To achieve the objectives of the study, six research questions were set and answered for the study. Two hypotheses were formulated, and tested. The research questions raised among others include; what is the level of awareness of open access by academic librarians in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigerian? What is the level of usage of open access resources for academic productivity by academic librarians in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigeria? What factors militate against the use of open access resources by academic librarians in Federal universities in North Western States of Nigeria? The hypotheses formulated for this study were: there is no significant relationship between awareness and use of open access resources for research productivity of academic librarians in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigeria. There is no significant relationship between use of open access resources and research productivity of academic librarians in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigeria. Survey research method was adopted for the study while structured questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The population comprised academic librarians in Federal universities in Northwestern States of Nigeria. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics for the research questions and for the hypothesis Person's Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) was used in order to test the relationship between the variables under study. The findings from the study revealed that majority of the respondents indicated high level of awareness about open access publications (OAP). Although they showed some level of awareness and familiarity with OA, their awareness was hinged mainly on the nature and types of open access and not on open access initiatives. The study also discovered that librarians portray high level of usage of open access resources. Even though majority claimed to have accessed open access resources, majority of the respondents acknowledged that they do not make their scholarly output via same source. The study revealed that inadequate funding for building and upgrading ICT infrastructure in academic and research institutions, unstable power supply, unavailability or slow Internet connection, technological barriers from digital rights, lack of sensitization to adopt open access, intellectual freedom issues (such as privacy, copyright, censorship) and lack of Skill on how to use ICT facilities were the major factors militating against the use of open access resource by academic librarians. In view of the above findings, it was therefore, recommended that advocacy on other forms of OA initiatives have become so imperative as this would help in inculcating and improving the level of awareness on open access initiatives. There is also the need for sensitization campaign to encourage librarians to publish via open access models of scholarly communication so as to contribute to the existing body of knowledge not mere consumers. Finally, adequate funding is seriously needed for building and upgrading poor ICT infrastructure in academic and research institutions. Unstable power supply, unavailability or slow Internet connection should be improved. Likewise measures need to be taken on technological barriers arising from digital rights, intellectual freedom issues (such as privacy, copyright and censorship) need to be addressed. Adequate training on skill on how to use ICTs facilities is equally needed. This could be achieved by collaborating with institutions, government agencies, open access related initiatives and agencies.