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    Critical examination of sidathsangarawa through secondary sources
    (The Library, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2023) Divakara, Anurin Indika; Jayasundara, C.C.
    It is possible to observe the emergence of various language forms in response to contemporary social communication needs. The process of standardizing one form of language practice can be discerned through an examination of the social history of the language. Although it cannot be explicitly stated, it is evident that there was a diffusion of 'Siyabasa' intertwined with local mother tongues. This can be substantiated by analyzing the language usage in modern prose works, which indicates a trend toward the standardization of Tamil language usage. During a period when the Tad language form was considered a 'popular' expression and a societal norm, Sidatsangara stands out as a noteworthy instance in which the applied grammatical rules of the Sinhala language were influenced by the standardization of 'Jheka Pryoga' and 'Vyavaharashra.' This influence can be traced back to the poetic works originating from 'Siyabasa.' According to the content of relevant texts, such as the Sidathasagarava compiled by Pathiraja Piruwanpati Thero it offers insights into the scope of the grammar rules and special usages, drawing from secondary sources.
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    Adoption of electronic books in a higher education setting: an exploratory case study based on Diffusion of Innovation and Garner’s Hype Cycle paradigms
    (Annals of Library and Information Studies, 2021) Jayasundara, C.C.
    The purpose of this research was to examine the status of library users' adoption of e-books in line with Rogers's Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) theory and Gartner’s Hype Cycle (GHC) Model in the context of Fiji National University (FNU). The FNU Library introduced e-books to its user community in 2014. Purposively chosen 40 undergraduate students from the College of Business, Hospitality and Tourism Studies were selected as the sample to conduct in-depth interviews. The study revealed that the participants' e-book adoption habits were primarily divided among early adopters, early majority, and late majority. The results disclosed many factors that influence the adoption of e-books, such as familiarity with the technology, personal taste, exposure to trial access, use of preferred access devices and enthusiasm for reading. Findings indicate that e-books adoption of university undergraduates in line with the DOI and GHC paradigms has substantiated how the underpinning theories could help interpret the adoption of e-books in teaching and learning environment. Thus, this research will help librarians and educators develop a robust mechanism for better understanding the inherent status-quo of e-book usage in higher education institutions. These research findings will also help develop strategies that can significantly enhance universities' traditional teaching and learning performance with emerging technologies.
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    How a “fine regime” of an unacceptable user behaviour policy affects library use: nudging or shoving?
    (Journal of Access Services, 2021) Jayasundara, C.C.
    A discussion of long-term thefts in the library suggested creating a highly punitive policy that captures the dynamics of the context through a holistic approach. The study inquired about how the penalty regime affects the attitudes of students and library staff toward fines. Data was collected through in-depth interviews to reveal three groups' attitudes: offenders, principled users, and staff. Twenty staff were interviewed, and forty of the students interviewed were registered users, 20 of whom had previously been fined for attempting to steal books, while the rest had no record of policy violations. The findings show that 30% of students were aware of the existence of the written policy only after being punished, which indicates that they were not given proper library orientation at the outset. The paper discusses how heavy fines and banishment from the library impacted attitudes toward the services offered in the building. Feedback from participants can be part of an early warning system used to maintain a high-level of service quality minimizing security issues.
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    Sexual health information seeking behaviour of adolescents and their satisfaction with the information outcome: An application of the theory of motivated information management
    (Elsevier The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 2021) Jayasundara, C.C.
    This study investigates how the Theory of Motivated Information Management influences adolescents' sexual information-seeking behaviour and their satisfaction with the information they find. A cross-sectional investigation that purposively selected and surveyed 128 adolescents in the Matara District of Sri Lanka using a semi-structured questionnaire was designed. The variables such as high-risk sexual behaviour, having a partner or not, sexual curiosity, computer self-rated proficiency, sex of the adolescents, self-rated English proficiency, Uncertainty Discrepancy anxiety and self-efficacy were used to inquire about the contributing effects on adolescents' sexual health information seeking behaviour. The findings reveal that the most important sexual health information for adolescents is the information related to “high-risk sexual behaviour” and “sexual curiosity”. Boys are more likely to engage with sexual health information in a positive way than girls. The results further validate the TMIM framework. The orientation of associations between model variables has been consistent with past studies, particularly the negative relationship between anxiety and efficacy. Adolescents expressed difficulties in obtaining health information, including difficulty determining the quality of information and the lack of appropriate health information, highlighting the need for effective measures in this area. To overcome these barriers, the Ministries of Health and Education, the National Library, the Academic Library System and particularly medical/health libraries in universities, and the National Youth Services Council should plan easily accessible, outcome measurable, and appropriate opportunities and training through their official centres and institutions.
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    TOWARDS AN ORGANIZATIONALLY SENSIBLE HR RISK ASSESSMENT IN ACADEMIC LIBRARIES: A CASE OF A UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
    (Library Philosophy and Practice,University of Nebraska - Lincoln, 2020) Jayasundara, C.C.
    Employees can be a resource of sustained success and a competitive advantage in any orgnisation, reliant on skilled workforce. However, dearth of trained labour force to drive the manpower requirement of local industries has become a long lasting burden in some small counties. These countries do not have adequate professional advancement opportunities for librarians and support staff to become professionals or paraprofessionals due to lack of openings for specialist education in the field of librarianship. Thus, human resource risks in libraries of such countries are comparatively higher. It is therefore needed to identify and assess the severity and impact of HR risks to mitigate the future burdens with a set of carefully planned HR management practices, which can positively increase the risk resilience. Due to less professional educational opportunities, economic downturn and outflow of educated personnel in Fiji, employers have been unable to recruit and retain suitably qualified professionals and paraprofessionals specially for academic libraries. All universities have hired many librarians from foreign countries and some universities have employed untrained manpower for paraprofessional work. Consequently, this research also tried to identify HR threats and vulnerabilities related to the Department of Library services in the Fiji National University (FNU) with the objective of directing the opted library for a possible risk mitigation plan. The study used qualitative methods by exercising semi-structured interviews for a sample of 25 professionals and paraprofessionals in the library. The research identified HR risks, their prevailing circumstances, library operation and its relationship with these HR risks, and finally to address what could be improved. Nevertheless, the management of HR risk will be continuing and its connotation will be unique and richer because of the Library is a part of a larger autonomous venture. It is therefore found that HR risks are bound to overall management of the university to cause a profound and extensive impact.
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    Beware the Tyranny, Resulted by Impact Factor Mania Among the Scientists: A Critical Review
    (Journal of the University of Ruhuna, 2020) Jayasundara, C.C.
    Publishing articles in high-ranked journals brings a higher payoff that designates a greater likelihood of scholastic success of academics and researchers. In the present climate, it provides many opportunities for researchers to be in a "Golden Club" and catch a great deal of offers from Head-hunters, particularly for jobs, research grants, and consultancies, as many people in the research/academic industry still rely on the fact that greater impact is widely apparent in high ranked journals and the journals with high Impact Factor (IF). In universities, many researchers in academic administration positions, who have already progressed with high visibility by publishing research in journals with high IF, always attempt to put into action the same level of requirements and stipulations in publications for tenure decisions of academic and research staff together with rewarding and endowing perks including financial incentives. Assessing junior colleagues purely by exercising the IF score or journal ranks in senior researchers' mind-set has been widely prevalent in academia in the global context. Enforcing rules and regulations for promotion, recruitment, and financial incentives for tenure decisions only for the publications in high profiled journals with top IF is a kind of mania. It, in turn, creates a dismantle discrimination and precede for academic bullying and professional prejudice in universities. Thus, this paper discusses some of the problems with IF and journal ranking mechanisms, which consist of prevailing distortions in the scientific industry by disclosing the failures to predict the definite impact and creation of perverse incentives. It further proposes some points to be taken for reforming/devising an appropriate mechanism targeting the definite impact of essential scientific values of research and researchers that can be readily used for measuring the impact