Perceptions of information literacy competencies among future psychology professionals: A comparative study in Spain and Portugal

Abstract

Purpose – The aim of the study is to analyze the perceptions of belief-in-importance (BI), self-efficacy (SE) and preferred source of learning (SL) of information literacy (IL) competencies among psychology students in Spain and Portugal. Design/methodology/approach – Unified protocol was based on the questionnaire IL-HUMASS (26 items). Quantitative diagnostic-comparative study was carried out, including factor and variance analysis. Hypothesis compliance was checked. Findings – By country, there are no significant differences in students’ perceptions, although the scores in BI are higher than in SE. By category, there are some significant differences, and the least valued is that of processing. By individual competency, seven of them show differences between countries. Learning preferences are for a mix of classroom and autonomous learning. Students barely realize the value of libraries. Within factor structures, which share the same components in each dimension, some emerging factors do appear. Practical implications – Motivation (BI and SE) with respect to IL competencies is a key asset for future psychologists. Interest should focus on some emerging motivational factors. Students’ appreciation of the library should enhance through the corresponding initiatives for improvement. This method could be complemented by qualitative studies.Originality/value – This is probably the first diagnostic-comparative study on perceptions of IL competencies among future psychology professionals. Keywords Information literacy, Competencies, Belief-in-importance, Self-efficacy, Learning source, Higher education, Teaching-learning, Graduate psychology curriculum, Comparative studies Paper type Research paper