Establishing clients’ satisfaction levels with automated library based services: A case study at University of Cape Coast library, Ghana

Purpose: Library automation is required in academic libraries to meet the dynamic demands of clients. This study aims to investigate the level of clients’ satisfaction of Sam Jonah library automation. Design/methodology/approach: The study utilized the descriptive research design by using an exploratory case study research method. A disproportionate stratified random sampling was used to select 322 respondents (undergraduates, postgraduates and lecturers/researchers) who consented to participate in the study. Questionnaire and informal interview were used for the data collection. Findings: The study showed that more than half of the clients of Sam Jonah library were moderately satisfied with the library’s automation. Clients mostly access internet/Wi-Fi and reference service. Patronage of the services including photocopying, borrowing of books (circulation), e-resources/academic databases, institutional repository, library website and the OPAC was not encouraging. Increase in user education was recommended to improve their usage. Research limitations/implications: The study was limited to only one academic library, namely, Sam Jonah library of the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. Originality/value: The study provides insight into a case study of satisfactory level of clients in accessing automated services of Sam Jonah Library to serve as a basis for further research. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited.