A study on university students' reading habits and library usage: The case of Djibouti

The main purpose of this thesis is to reveal the importance of the relationship between individual and social development and reading and library habits. It is aimed to reveal the perceptions, attitudes, and levels of university students, who are considered relatively educated in society, and the role of the library in this regard with the sample of Djibouti University. For this purpose, a questionnaire consisting of 32 questions in French was administered to 370 university students. As a result of the evaluation of the data obtained, a very low level of positive and negative correlation was found between the situations revealing reading habits, library habits, and socio-economic status, and in some cases, no relationship was found. This situation has been evaluated that the reading, library habit behaviors and socio-economic status of Djibouti University students are independent of each other. On the other hand, it was concluded that students' reading habits and library use are very low. In terms of prioritization, students spent more time listening to music, watching TV, playing sports, and using computers. The majority of the students were of the opinion that the University of Djibouti Library does not provide quality services and that its services are not sufficient to meet their needs. The majority of these students do not have access to books at home either. Therefore, it was evaluated that the biggest obstacle to reading is the problem of access to resources. As a result, it is necessary to raise awareness in order to gain reading and library habits. Therefore, training, projects, and policies should be implemented in the country to raise awareness.