Date of Award

1990

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Abstract

The study examined the relationships between the use of information sources by civil servants and the characteristics of their work, the organizational environments within which they seek information, and the characteristics of the information sources.;The study was based on a survey of senior civil servants in eleven ministries in seven states of Nigeria. In addition, library managers in eight of the ministries were interviewed and published documents about the ministries were analyzed.;Analyses revealed that civil servants use more information sources for complex work activities than for less complex activities. Also, direct relationships were observed between the use of certain external information sources (especially, consultancy reports and conference/workshop papers), and the complexity of, and the level of user discretion in the activities. However, for internal files, an inverse relationship was found between source use and work complexity and user discretion.;Direct relationships were also found between the use of documentary sources and the availability and adequacy of the sources in the ministries.;The sources most often used by civil servants were those which provide procedural and legal information, and information that enabled civil servants to justify and/or account for official decisions to their superiors. Relationships were also observed between source use and such attributes of civil servants as the number of years of experience in the civil service, and the frequency of attendance at conferences, courses or inter-ministerial meetings.;Finally, the study identified the nature, information requirements and the relative importance of various work activities in the government ministries, and some problems with the provision of library-based documentary information resources to civil servants performing the activities.;The study clearly sheds light on some of the key correlates of source use in government institutions in Nigeria. Such insight is important to further research on the issue, and to information policy initiatives in government ministries in developing countries.

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