Use pattern of e-Journals by scientists in Selected Plantation Crops Research Institutes of South India

Abstract

This paper is an attempt to assess the use pattern of electronic journals among the scientists of select Plantation Crops Research Institutes of South India. The data collected from the survey through a structured questionnaire is analysed and interpreted to realise the objectives and test the formulated hypothesis. The findings reveal that majority of the scientists hailing from rural areas (66.18%) have posses Ph.D. degree in the respective field of the study. Among the population of 207 scientists, 194 (93.28%) use e- journals and other 13 (6.28%) do not consult them. Most of the scientists make use of ‘Open Access’ journals (91.66%) and also e-journals subscribed through CeRA consortium (75.49%). Besides, that majority of the scientists consult full text and abstract of the research articles ‘to a larger degree’ and ‘Table of Contents” and Bibliographical Description ‘to a smaller level. The absence of full coverage, unfamiliarity with e- journals and difficulty in reading from a computer screen etc. are cited as a reason for their non-use. The hypothesis tested using chi-square is found as null type.