Magister Library and Information Studies - MLIS

Permanent URI for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/10566/9806

Browse

Browsing by Author "Majola, Nozipho Cynthia"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Information-seeking behaviour of undergraduate visual communication and design students at the Durban University of Technology
    (University of the Western Cape, 2025) Majola, Nozipho Cynthia
    Over the years, quarterly minutes of the Durban University of Technology Library Committee (2022–2023) revealed that students in the Faculty of Arts and Design were not making expected use of library resources. In response, the study adopted a pragmatist research paradigm and conducted mixed methods research, including an online questionnaire, to investigate the information-seeking behaviour, including the information needs and retrieval strategies of undergraduate visual communication and design students. Data were collected from 23 third-year Graphic Design students, fifteen (15) Interior Design students, and fifteen (15) photography students in the Faculty of Arts and Design. Wilson’s (1981) information behaviour model and the Association of College and Research Libraries Competency Standards for Higher Education (2011a), updated by the Companion Document to the Association of College and Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education: Visual Literacy (2022), formed two components of the study’s theoretical framework. Wilson’s (1981) model and the updated Association of College and Research Libraries standards underpinned the determination of how the selected participants recognised their information needs and located and evaluated information. The framework was applied to solve problems or complete tasks within visual communication and design. The third component of the theoretical framework, McGee’s (1997) model of information literacy integration, supported the evaluation of whether the interaction between the library and undergraduate visual communication and design students was appropriately contextualised, whether the information literacy learning activities were suited to the specific needs of art and design students and whether these practices aligned with visual literacy standards. The study found that the library provided mostly printed books, which did not support the visual, digital, and practice-based nature of visual communication and design studies. Instead, students preferred accessing online images aligning with the curriculum and visual communication and design practices. Students lacked information and visual literacy skills regarding navigating the library shelves and online resources. They preferred to use Google, Google Scholar, and social media platforms as sources for images and artefacts. To improve the frequency of library use, the study recommended that the Durban University of Technology Library market its services and facilities, replace dated sources of information, and provide access to online databases, including patent information, case studies, movies, newsletters, flyers, different types of software, news of current events, and art workshops. The library website and retrieval tools must be adapted to ensure easy navigation and user-friendly interfaces.