Determining the level of readiness of librarians and public libraries of Isfahan province in the face of COVID-19 Pandemic

The widespread and surprising spread of the Covid-19 led to an unprecedented closure of public libraries, and this closure showed that public libraries have little preparation and anticipation to deal with and adapt to the special situation caused by the spread of the Covid-19 virus. The aim of this study is to determine the level of readiness of librarians and public libraries in Isfahan province in the face of COVID-19 disease.

The current research is a cross-sectional, descriptive-survey study with an applied purpose that was carried out using the field method. The statistical population included all the librarians of the public libraries of Isfahan province in the year 1400 SH, numbering 357 people, from whom 185 librarians were selected as the research sample using a simple random sampling method. In order to collect people’s views, a researcher-made questionnaire was used; The content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by several experts in information and Knowledge science, and the construct validity was measured and confirmed by second-order factor analysis using Smart-PLS3 software; The questionnaire’s reliability was measured using Cronbach’s alpha, which was found to be 0.95. For data analysis, SPSS software (version 22) and descriptive statistics methods such as mean, and standard deviation, and inferential statistics tests such as variance analysis, one-way t-test, one-way variance analysis test, Duncan’s post-hoc test and factor analysis were used.

The results showed that the level of preparedness of librarians and public libraries of Isfahan province in facing the COVID-19 disease with an average of 3.81 is significantly higher than the average, which is at an acceptable level and close to optimal. Preparedness for remote work with an average of 4.19 was the highest, and preparedness for job performance in cyberspace with an average of 3.36 was the lowest component of the readiness of librarians and public libraries of Isfahan province; There is no significant difference between respondents’ perceptions in terms of gender, age, work experience, field of study, and organizational position. Furthermore, there is a significant difference between the perceptions of the respondents regarding the readiness of public libraries in Isfahan province in facing the COVID-19 disease according to their educational qualifications and marital status. Respondents with associate degrees, as well as married respondents, have evaluated the level of preparation of libraries at a higher level than other groups. It is suggested that administrators train librarians and strengthen information technology infrastructure to strengthen the performance of cyberspace. Libraries need to formulate appropriate policies in order to increase the level of preparedness while facing crisis and infectious diseases, these policies and rules should be determined in the form of general principles before the occurrence of the crisis and at the time of the beginning of the crisis, and in crucial times, they should be used by adding minor items.

Originality/value: 

The results of the current research are important due to the emergence of the COVID-19 virus and the small number of researches conducted in this field, and it can lead to a greater understanding of the level of preparedness of public libraries and librarians and help library managers to get the necessary preparations against the risks affecting the optimal service to the audience through making appropriate policies and plans.