Utilization of E-Books among Undergraduate Medical Students at Lahor

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to report on a survey that was carried out to access the perception of the academic users, and their awareness about the use of e-books at existing level. The survey also seeks to find out the preferences of the users regarding the format for using books. A quantitative approach which employs a survey technique was used to collect information on e-books utilization habit among medical students. Statistical analyses were carried out on the data using Software Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). This study found that most of the undergraduate students have common habits as they read e-books for academic purpose and still preferred to read text books in print format. The factors; such as easy and round the clock access, non-consumption of energy through physical visit to the library and users friendly features offer a comfortable platform for the students to use the reference e-books. However, unreliable service, eye fatigue, requirement of username and password cause to feel uncomfortable with the service. Moreover, the role of librarian is perceived to be an important remedy for all the inconvenience incurred. Only 119 medical undergraduates participated in the study. Furthermore, these students are enrolled in 5th year MBBS in the oldest government sector medical colleges of Lahore. This study is important in terms of obtaining a better understanding of e-books utilization and to provide a rich insight from academic professional to enhance the e-books collection. This is believed to be the first published study about the utilization of e-books by the medical undergraduate students'.

E-book data mining: real information behavior of university academic community

“…These results support the earlier findings by Khan et al . (2016), Rafiq (2014) and Rafiq and Warraich (2016); that the use of e-books was still in the growing stage. Similarly, e-books' use has also been reported to be at a very early stage by Tenopire (2003) and Noorhidawati and Gibb (2008).…”

“…In the local context, studies by Rafiq (2014) and Rafiq and Warraich (2016) found greater use of open access e-books as compared to the HEC subscribed e-books among students for academic purposes. In another study, Khan et al (2016) investigated the use of e-books through survey research and reported that the use of e-books among agricultural, engineering and social science students of KPK universities was quite low.…”

“…In the local context, studies by Rafiq (2014) and Rafiq and Warraich (2016) found greater use of open access e-books as compared to the HEC subscribed e-books among students for academic purposes. In another study, Khan et al .…”

“…Jadoon et al (2011) highlighted that there was moderate confidence in the process of online searching and downloading of medical books and full text articles among self-reporting medical students. Khan et al (2016) investigated the use of e-books among agricultural, engineering and social science university students in Khyber PakhtunKhwa, Pakistan, whereas, Rafiq (2014) and Rafiq and Warraich (2016) investigated the use of e-books among medical undergraduate students in Lahore. These studies reported little or growing use of open access e-books among medical students.…”

Validity of Class XI Term I Chemistry Electronic Books (E-Books) Integrated with STEM of High School Students

“…E-books are digital versions of printed books that can be accessed and read through electronic devices such as computers, tablets, smartphones, or electronic reading devices (e-readers). E-Books generally have file formats such as PDF, EPUB, or MOBI that allow readers to read, store, and carry book collections practically in one device [4]- [5]. E-Books have become popular due to their practicality in providing quick access to various reading materials without the need to physically carry a physical book.…”