Digital library acceptance and continued use: conceptual framework / Abd Latif Abdul Rahman and Adnan Jamaludin

At present, users are already relying on the availability of the
digital library for their information needs to support their daily
tasks. In the context of the university environment, the digital
library in the university is being utilized by students and
academics almost all the time. This is because their learning and
teaching activities involve using information resources which
are offered by the digital library. As such, the digital library in
universities is not only playing an important role but it will also
become one of the most sophisticated and important information
systems supporting the universities’ activities. In this context,
librarians and information professionals who are responsible
for the development of the digital library need to understand the
intricacies of it so that the advantages and benefits can be
exploited for the betterment of library and information service
provisions. One of the most important aspects about the digital
library in the university environment is its acceptance and
usage by the university community, particularly the students. The
success of the digital library is only as good as its acceptance and
usage by the users and as such, it is crucial to investigate and
understand not only its acceptance and usage, but also how and
why it is being accepted and used. In other words, variables
that are deemed important that may have some influences on the
acceptance and use of digital library need to be examined.
Therefore, this paper develops a conceptual framework on
digital library acceptance which includes Performance
Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Information Quality and
Digital Library Services as a predictor of continued use of digital
library. Because the digital library is one of the most significant
technologies in the field of library and information science,
this proposed model would contribute significant benefits for
librarians and information professionals at large. Furthermore,
with the dearth of research in this area, the proposed model would
contribute with a better understanding of the extent to which the
digital library is being accepted and continued used, through an
analysis of the factors involved and how they interact with each
other. With these insights, professionals can improve and enhance
the services of the digital library so that users could obtain the
optimum benefit.