Study: Libraries at risk of becoming irrelevant

Research libraries have long been the proud curators of historic print collections and regarded as places of quiet study. But with the explosion of the Internet and electronic publishing, users are increasingly turning their backs on libraries as a physical space, using them as virtual, digital environments instead. Libraries’ role in warehousing large book collections is rapidly becoming redundant, according to a study to be published January 16, 2008. The study warns that libraries must move with the digital times or risk becoming irrelevant.

One interesting finding is that contrary to popular belief, young people’s ability to search for and evaluate information on the Web has not improved with the widening access to technology, the study says. Young people tend to use search engines such as Google and Yahoo as their first, and often only, port of call in searching for information. They have a poor understanding of their information needs and find it difficult to develop effective search strategies. They also spend little time evaluating information for relevance, accuracy or authority, it says. Read more in the Guardian Unlimited.