Librarians’ cataloguing interest, skills and behavioural competencies

Abstract

Cataloguing is paramount in Nigerian university library services and purely a technical process requiring specialized knowledge and skills, application of standards and protocols, use of technical tools and software, focus on organizing and processing library materials, and emphasis on accuracy, consistency, and quality control. This paper focuses on examining the cataloguing interest, skills and behavioural competencies required by librarians in Nigerian university libraries. Cataloguing interest refers to the driving attraction or enthusiasm for organizing, classifying and making information resources discoverable and retrievable which every librarian requires for greater efficiency. Fundamentally, librarians need adequate skills in cataloguing and metadata processes. This involves application of conceptual frameworks, standards, and principles within a bibliographic system.  Additionally, behavioural competency describes both personal attributes that contribute to success in the profession and ways of thinking that can be developed through coursework and employment experience. Some recommendations were made which among others include that constant training and retraining of librarians in order to improve their cataloguing knowledge and that the university libraries should provide adequate cataloguing tools with which the librarians can master the art of cataloguing