Academics’ use and attitude towards open access in selected higher learning institutions of Ethiopia

Abstract

Libraries in higher learning institutions (HLIs) of Ethiopia have been providing electronic information (e-information) resources to users such as academics through different access models, including open access. Nonetheless, little is known about the academics’ attitudes toward open access journals. The study triangulated qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. Data were obtained through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Out of 768 academics from seven selected universities in Ethiopia who were surveyed, 566 (78 percent) responded. The data were analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively by means of content analysis and basic descriptive statistics respectively. The results of the study revealed that 78 percent of the academics were aware of open access journals. On the whole, they have a perceived positive attitude towards open access journals and would like to use them in the future. Moreover, they have been using open access journals as an alternative access model to the conventional journals subscription model; and yet to optimize the benefits of open access among academics, they expect university librarians to promote and enhance the accessibility of open access journals in their respective university libraries and in Ethiopia in general. Further studies using a similarly rigorous approach are required to determine the generality of this finding.