Introduction:Research self-efficacy if the people's judgment of their abilities in order to organize and conduct meaningful research in different formats. The aim of this study is to determinate the rate of research self-efficacy among students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences based on Research Self-efficacy Scale.Materials and Methods:The method of this study is an applied survey method. Statistical population is all students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and the sample size was calculated to be 361 samples based on Krejcie and Morgan table. Random sampling method was used with equal number of samples from every department. Data collection tool is Salehi et al. questionnaire (with 7 dimensions) with Likert scale (5 grades). Its validity and reliability were confirmed by Psychology and Research Method experts and Cronbach's alpha (r = 0.84) respectively. Data gathering method was direct visit to each department. The data was then analyzed using t-test and one-tailed ANOVA using SPSS 16 software.Results:The finding showed that among research self-efficiency dimensions research ethics dimension had the highest and quality research dimension had the lowest means. Furthermore comparing the research self-efficacy scores with demographic characteristics suggests that there is no significant difference between total score of research self-efficacy of different departments, genders or educational degrees (P > 0.05).Conclusion:Since the score of most of the research self-efficacy dimensions were, lower than average, holding periodical workshops, inclusion of necessary courses in the educational plan, forcing student to perform research activity such as writing articles in lower educational levels and improvement of research culture for students with the help of experienced professors are some of practical solutions, which can lead to increasing the motivation of the students for conducting efficient research.

Introduction:The important role of information and communication technologies and their influence on methods of storing, retrieving information in digital libraries, has not only changed the meanings behind classic library activates but has also created great changes in their services. However, it seems that not all digital libraries provide their users with similar services and only some of them are successful in fulfilling their role in digital environment. The Iranian National Medical library is among those that appear to come short compared to other digital libraries around the world. By knowing the different services provided by digital libraries worldwide, one can evaluate the services provided by Iranian National Medical library. The goal of this study is a comparison between Iranian National Medical library and digital libraries of selected countries.Materials and Methods:This is an applied study and uses descriptive – survey method. The statistical population is the digital libraries around the world which were actively providing library services between October and December 2011 and were selected by using the key word “Digital Library” in Google search engine. The data-gathering tool was direct access to the websites of these digital libraries. The statistical study is descriptive and Excel software was used for data analysis and plotting of the charts.Results:The findings showed that among the 33 digital libraries investigated worldwide, most of them provided Browse (87.87%), Search (84.84%), and Electronic information retrieval (57.57%) services. The “Help” in public services (48/48%) and “Interlibrary Loan” in traditional services (27/27%) had the highest frequency. The Iranian National Medical library provides more digital services compared to other libraries but has less classic and public services and has less than half of possible public services. Other than Iranian National Medical library, among the 33 libraries investigated, the leaders in providing different services are Library of University of California in classic services, Count Way Library of Medicine in digital services, and Library of Finland in public services.Results and Discussion:The results of this study show that among the digital libraries investigated, most provided similar public, digital, and classic services and The Iranian National Medical library has been somewhat successful in providing these services compared to other digital libraries. One can also conclude that the difference in services is at least in part due to difference in environments, information needs, and users.Conclusion:Iranian National Medical Library has been somewhat successful in providing library services in digital environment and needs to identify the services which are valuable to its users by identifying the users’ needs and special characteristics of its environment

BACKGROUND: The best mechanisms for medical librarians to be more involved in health, especially during crisis condition, and to expand their roles are using experiences of other individuals and performing new activities. This study aimed to identify the roles of medical librarians in the COVID-19 crisis in Iran. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This research was done by a qualitative content analysis method. Research participants in the first phase included whole scientific papers (19 documents) which had been published by medical librarians related to the COVID-19 issue and in the second phase 10 medical librarians involved in the COVID-19 who were interviewed and continued until data saturation. Data were collected through each interview, and data analysis was performed using content analysis method. Then, obtained information of the first and second phases was merged together, and codes, subcategories as well as main categories were formed. RESULTS: According to the results, 7 main categories and 24 subcategories regarding the roles of librarians in COVID-19 crisis were identified. The main categories include hygiene services promotion, development of health information-seeking skills, health research services, interaction-level development, evidence-based policy development, information dissemination services promotion, and management services development. Furthermore, regarding barriers to the role of medical librarians in the COVID-19 crisis in Iran, four subcategories were identified that are medical librarian-related barriers, organization-related barriers, profession-related barriers, and context of society (country conditions)-related barriers. CONCLUSION: Medical librarians relatively have been able to provide effective health information services to managers, health-care specialists, and the general public in a variety of health fields.

No abstract