Exploring the role of demographic and institutional factors in digital information-seeking behavior and digital confidence among students

A study at two public universities in Bangladesh

Bibliographic Data

ID21501178
AuthorsNusrat Jannat Bipasha (0000-0001-6137-3677, University of Dhaka), Mozammel Bhuyan (0000-0001-8440-7454, Noakhali Science and Technology University), Md Mozammel Bhuyan (Noakhali Science and Technology University, corresponding author), Muhammad Mezbah-ul-Islam (University of Dhaka)
Year2026
Publication date2026-05-07
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInformation Development (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0266-6669 • E-ISSN: 1741-6469
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/02666669261449207
OpenAlexW7160555446
LanguageEN
References cited54

This study aims to investigate the digital Information-Seeking Behavior (ISB) and digital confidence of university students in Bangladesh and to explore their association with demographic factors and institutional context. A cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted with 450 students from two major public universities in Bangladesh. The study found a strong preference for digital resources (M = 4.08), with search engines (M = 3.85) and e-books/online journals (M = 3.85) being the most frequently used tools. University-specific digital resources were used less often (M = 3.67). Digital confidence was significantly correlated with gender ( p p p p = 0.000). Additionally, older students and those in STEM fields showed greater digital engagement and confidence. This study highlights the role of institutional contexts in shaping students’ digital engagement and suggests that demographic factors influence digital confidence. It emphasizes the need for targeted, context specific digital literacy programs to reduce digital divides and enhance critical digital competencies among different student subgroups in Bangladesh

Digital divide · Digital Literacy · Higher education · Logistic regression · Multinomial logistic regression · Preference · Public university · Survey data collection · Digital literacy in education · Gender and Technology in Education · Library Science and Information Literacy

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