ADOPTION AND UTILIZATION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) TOOLS FOREFFECTIVE ONLINE REFERENCE SERVICES DELIVERY IN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES INNORTH-CENTRAL, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study investigates the adoption and utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools for effective online reference service delivery in University Libraries North-Central, Nigeria. The study adopted cross-sectional survey research design. The population of the study was 33 reference librarians, who had the experience of working in the reference section. The purposive sampling technique was used. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency, mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study revealed that ChatGPT and Grammarly were the only AI tools adopted. The findings also revealed low usage of AI tools for reference services, answering of reference query was the only AI service used, Librarians had positive perception about use of AI in reference services. The challenges that hindered the use of AI were; limited technical infrastructure in libraries, financial constraints of libraries, high cost of adoption and maintenance of AI tools, lack of AI skills among library staff. The study concluded that the adoption and use of AI tools in the libraries studied is low, implying a need for modalities to be put in place to enhance the adoption and use of AI tools. The study recommended training of staff on the use of AI, provision of adequate funds for the purchase of AI infrastructures among others.