Artificial intelligence readiness: Examining the role of digital literacy among librarians in university libraries in Nigeria

Abstract The paper examined the role of digital literacy in AI readiness among librarians in federal university libraries in Nigeria. The research was anchored on the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Theory by Mishra and Koehler in 2006. The survey design was descriptive, and the study population comprises all the librarians working in university libraries in Nigeria. The census sampling technique was adopted, and an online questionnaire was used to collect data. The online questionnaire was administered to the librarians, and 315 completed it, and with that, the analysis was made. Findings revealed that librarians possessed a moderate level of digital literacy, with strengths in basic ICT skills, digital communication, and information retrieval, but lower proficiency in digital content creation and identity management. A moderate level of AI readiness was found among librarians due to a lack of institutional support and infrastructural facilities; however, librarians show stronger enthusiasm to learn. Additionally, there was a moderate to high level of self-directed adaptive strategies among librarians, such as skill upgrading and networking in reaction to the changes caused by AI. The test of hypothesis one showed a positive, moderate, and significant relationship between digital literacy and AI readiness among librarians. The regression model also had a significant statistical value, which means that digital literacy is a significant predictive variable of AI readiness. The authors recommended that university libraries and other stakeholders should invest in AI-relevant training and infrastructure that will make librarians better prepared and leaders in AI projects, etc.