Online Tools for Scholarly Communication in Library and Information Science

Abstract

The rapid growth in digital technologies significantly revolutionizes the dissemination of scholarly communication. Digital tools now facilitate the discovery, creation, management, dissemination, and evaluation of scholarly information. Such tools are found in Library and Information Science for the enhancement of research workflows, collaboration, and visibility of scholarly outputs. Major online tools to be looked at include academic search engines, reference management software, institutional repositories, academic social networking platforms, and tools measuring research impact. This study employed a descriptive research methodology based on secondary data with a literature review. Accordingly, key observations highlight that the roles of libraries and information professionals are considered paramount in providing guidance in research support, managing digital resources, and promoting open access practices. In this regard, the key findings propose that for effective scholarly communication to exist in this digital age, continuous training, strategic adoption of online tools, and awareness of ethical and quality standards become quite indispensable.