Perceived Records Management Practice and Decision Making Among University Administrators in Nigeria

Abstract

Information is needed to develop, deliver and assess the effectiveness of organizational policies, make informed choices between alternative courses of action, provide the basis for openness and accountability, protect individual rights and enforce legal obligations. The general disposition of people, and especially office personnel, to have little regard for records has contributed to the poor state of records today in all of the nation's institutions of higher learning. The aim of this study was to investigate perceived record management practices and administrative decision-making among University administrators in Nigeria and to make appropriate recommendations to strengthen efficiency and effectiveness in the university sector. The study was an ex post facto in which the researcher used a semi-structured questionnaire to obtain information about perceived records management and administrative decision making from 795 senate members enrolled by stratified random sampling of universities within Nigeria.The results showed that respondents were federal universities 521 (65.5%), State 224 (28-2%) and Private 50(6.3%). The median age of respondents was 41-50years and 543(68-3%) males and 226(28.4%) females. Regarding awareness of Record management practice, 133(16.7%) respondents reported not being aware of any organized system of records management programme. Further, respondents' perceived records management practice and their decision -making process showed a significant relationship with a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.840 (p<0.0001). Testing for variations in records management (F=147.3; p<0.0001), and administrative decision-making process (F= 142.91; p<0.0001) among respondents in the categories of universities surveyed revealed that a significant difference thus exist suggesting that they perceive and processed their records differently for decision-making. The findings in this study suggest that respondents sampled from the three categories of universities demonstrated perceived records management practice to be contingent in administrative decision-making process. Recommendations made includes; the establishment of a comprehensive functional Records Management Programme in all Nigerian universities and a university Archive, also that the National University Commission (NUC) should make as a matter of policy the establishment of a functional Records Management Programme and University Archives as a benchmark for accreditation.

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