Legislation and policy framework to apply artificial intelligence in providing information services of academic libraries in South Africa: A case study

Abstract

A legislative framework is at the heart of attaining the goals of organisations, including academic libraries specifically using artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic machines. Legislation is needed in libraries to guide the use of AI. The purpose of this study was to investigate the application of a policy and legislative framework to apply AI in the information services of an academic library in South Africa. The study adopted convergent mixed methods research using the parallel sampling technique to investigate the policy and legislative framework that is being applied at an academic library. The population comprised a total of 14 participants, including 10 information librarians, one technical librarian and two library executives. A questionnaire, interviews and document analysis were used to gather the data. The researchers analysed the study's quantitative data using figures. To analyse the qualitative data, the researcher used Atlas.ti software. The results show that the academic library had policies in place and that it utilised South African legislation to provide information services. However, the policies did not address the use of AI. The study recommends that the academic library ensure that its policies and legislative framework are reviewed to include AI to provide information services effectively in a changing information environment. The study also recommends a framework to guide the academic library in applying legislation when using AI in providing information services.

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