Availability, Accessibility and Use of Library Information Resources for Control of Criminality of Inmates in Correctional Centres in South-West, Nigeria

The act of relapsing to crime after release has become a recurrent decimal to inmate and it poses a security threat to the society. Persistence on incarceration of offenders without meaningful engagement is like remaking criminality rather than reformation. Extant literature suggests educational opportunities to reduce criminal involvement of inmates. This research investigated the availability, accessibility and use of library information resources for control of criminality among inmate in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. Descriptive Survey Design was used and the population was 455 inmates who affirmed that tapes, radio sets, television sets, sound recording gadgets, video and audio cassette were available for use by inmates in their custodial centre (mean = 3.20), books were adequately available for use by inmates in their custodial centre (mean = 3.06) and pamphlets were parts of reading materials available for use by inmates in their custodial centre (mean = 2.62). The mean score range of 2.50 to 3.24 indicated a high level of availability while 3.25 to 4.00 indicated a very high level of accessibility of library information resources in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. It was concluded that with the availability and accessibility of library information resources to the inmates, the maximum use of the resources is capable of controlling criminality tendencies among inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria.


Introduction
resources or ability to travel to see the analogue collections, and access can be expanded to non-traditional audiences such as lifelong learners (Otubelu & Ume, 2015). Musa (2015) said that digitisation makes it easier for researchers to find and share the results of research, through free and unrestricted online availability and provide reliable long-term access to manage digital resources to its designated community, now and in the future to achieve optimum development goals in the institution. Musa (2012) opined that digitisation improves access to library resources. According to him, providing access to digitised collections can help publicise the materials to other departments and peers, in other institutions, around the world and demonstrate the importance of the collections. The result from the survey carried out in Kashim Ibrahim Library, Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria revealed that by digitising information resources in academic libraries, it raises the profile of the library and the institution to the top ranks of institutional repositories. The digitisation of priceless and valuable collections of the institution brings prestige to the whole institution as it creates visibility not only of the library's (institution's) content, but the scholars work within the higher institution of learning (Musa, 2012). Ogwezzy (2016) posited that the Nigerian state should provide the necessary framework to complement the traditional utilitarian system of punishment, 'imprisonment', and pursue a more victim/offender engagement for the prevention of crime, guarantee non-custodial treatment for crime offenders, and consequently forestall recidivism and decongest the prisons. Libraries have a long history of providing accessible services to people with disability, preceding many other social and government organisations (Hill, 2013;Jaeger et al., 2015). Specialised library services have played an important role in this; however, almost all libraries do provide a level of access and inclusion for people with disabilities (Jaeger et al., 2015). Currently, the majority of large public libraries in Australia and the United States provide borrowing materials in different formats, including audio and digital books. Provision of ramps, elevators and wheelchair accessible desks are also good examples of public libraries addressing inclusion of individuals with physical disabilities. While these initiatives demonstrate accessibility, libraries have endeavoured to provide access to all; there are always opportunities for improvement. This paper explored the perceptions of public library access for children with disabilities and their families and concluded by proposing an inclusive library model.
Claiming that a library is accessible functionality of the information resources therein will tell. Ibikunle and Oyewumi (2018) maintained that the existence and effective functioning of prison libraries is its ability to meet the information needs of inmates. Due to the peculiar nature of the prison, libraries should play a vital role in the rehabilitation of inmates through the provision of information resources such as books in diverse disciplines, newspapers, etc.
The prison library serves as a medium for teaching, research, recreation and learning by encouraging reading skills and has included appraisal, counselling and follow up as part of services rendered to inmates to help them recover both psychologically, mentally, physically as well has to redirect their thoughts. The absence of prison libraries is detrimental to the rehabilitation of inmates according to Rule 40 of the treatment of prisoners. It is recommended that there should be proper scrutiny of information resources acquired into the prison libraries, as well as acquisition of current and relevant materials that would meet the information needs of inmates to enhance maximum satisfaction. It is also recommended that inmates should be encouraged to make use of the information resources, the library should strategise on how best to provide mind-changing services to inmates' learning.
A functional library is to support reading and writing instruction of users. Library is expected to be filled with books and other media materials to support anyone who is willing to learn. Resources related to languages, spelling, grammar, history, art, drama, dance, music, literature, geography, economics, science, health, mathematics, computer science, and other topics of interest are supposed to be there. Collections of fiction and non-fiction materials of various levels are needed to accommodate varieties of interests and abilities of users. A functional library should provide a place for users to learn about books and book selection. This is where users can experience book genres and other reading materials in a smaller and more controlled environment. Effective strategies should be taught by librarian for selecting relevant, interesting, and appropriate reading materials of users' choice easily.
A functional library should be seen as an organised central storage and location for learning resources, such as equipments, audio players, DVDs, computers, games, and other materials that support teaching-learning. For a correctional house library to be tagged as being functional, it must be seen as resources' location for independent reading, personal exploration, project research, and individual assessment. Therefore, selected materials that meet personal, recreational and reading interests of users should be readily accessible in print and electronic. Further, gathering spots where curious users can express their experience in reading should be put in place. Here they can show their reactions to books write critical reviews and share it with peers, project the profession of their choice after release as a result of the books they have read.
With the functionality of library in the correctional house there is the possibility of inmates to have non-formal education and correspondence education that will make them admissible to society after being rehabilitated. Non-formal education is the one deliberately organised as learning activity outside the formal education system. It is usually meant for adults outside the school room. Through it, the introduction of new ideas, techniques, skills and new way of thinking or living will come up. This will take care of so many individuals who have had little or no education. It is a welcome opportunity to the inmates who have the hope of becoming new and permissible persons in the society after release. This is a design that does not cost as much as formal education system and it gives room for flexibility of operation with which the inmates who are inquisitive to learn will discover themselves. Correspondence education is another opportunity where inmates can learn. It is a branch of adult education which provides an alternative way of learning for categories of people who cannot leave where they are to have full time study in an institution but also need to learn and develop themselves. The intention of government incarcerating the inmates is for the inmates to change and become reformed individuals. Therefore, learning in the correctional centres could be a means of rehabilitation though it is voluntary. An inmate who is engaging in learning has realised a need or needs he wants to meet. That realisation will drive him to be ready for learning. Learning is not stagnant, the society is dynamic and so everyday there are changes and for an inmate to be a part of the system, he must understand the system and be able to change with the system. Correspondence education is a means by which an inmate can keep up with new knowledge and it keeps people abreast of new things and findings so as to fill the gap.
Inclusion is another key word that denotes accessibility to library information resources. Prison inmates are to be inclusive; they deserve standard libraries that are well equipped. The library must be stocked with relevant and useful books and other information resources of different formats such as encyclopaedias, dictionaries, handbooks, bibliographies, novels, manuals, newsletters, journals, bulletins, maps, atlas and textbooks. It has been observed that in Nigerian prisons, most of these information resources are not available and a few others available are only occasionally accessible. Accessibility to library resources by prison inmates can be addressed if prison libraries are provided with sufficient information resources and inmates are granted easy access to such resources. In addition, prison officials should see the prison library as means of character reformation and rehabilitation; and, the government and other stakeholders should provide adequate information materials for their use that would help change attitudes of inmates that should give them a focus even after leaving the prison (Emasealu, 2018).
For human development, information is one of the major resources, and access to it could improve knowledge. Information is the heart of the world's development. The increased access to timely, accurate, relevant, reliable and current information remains significant precursor to technological innovations. Bowe (2011) opined that the prison library is at the heart of the prisoners' learning journey by assisting in functional and emotional literacy and that the value of the prison library cannot be underestimated. Between 80 and 90 percent of the prison population that use the prison library, not only can the prison library help to bridge the digital divide and increase prisoners' ICT skills. It can also instil a love of books and reading through exciting reader development projects.
Inmates have the same information needs and reading interests as people outside correctional centres. However, they sometimes cannot access all material due to the high security sensitivity of their environment. Key stakeholders in the provision of information access are libraries. They play a huge role in providing information access to society. Specifically, with regard to the provision of library and information services to inmates, it is the public libraries through their extension mandate that provide information through outreach programmes (correctional services, hospitals, and places of safety). Garrido and Wyber (2017) asserted that libraries can be beneficial in providing information access to everyone and build an informed society which in turn will help empower economic growth of the country.
Moreover, Garrido and Wyber (2017) emphasised that the provision of information access is still a challenge, especially in developing countries where there are limited connections to the Internet, controlled access to information and lack of skills to access and utilise information. In a similar study, Ejike et al. (2014) revealed that most inmates in Nigeria are school dropouts or have no basic education andthe libraries can assist their literacy skills by giving them required information.
The Flexibility of a library exists when the library goes electronic. Electronic library acquires, processes, stores, evaluates and disseminates information via electronic means to the audience in need of information. It can serve as a medium for achieving national and community development through provision of relevant information necessary for decision making and policy enhancement. Electronic library is a multi-disciplinary concept that shares various branches of computer science including data management, information retrieval, library science, document management, information systems, the web, image processing, and artificial intelligence. Multidisciplinary nature of electronic library engenders flexibility in the definitions which makes it difficult to have a singular definition of e-library. However, the format, form and nature of digital libraries give clearer picture of what digital library means.  reiterated that electronic library is the library where some or all of the holdings of the library are available in electronic format, and the services of the library are also made available electronically-frequent over the Internet so that users can access them remotely. According to Hirsh (2014), the mission of library is to provide both information services and resources that are capable of meeting the research, teaching and learning needs of the users.
Eke (2020) defined use as the easiness of a product for user's interaction. He claimed that usability is distinctly different from accessibility, which concerns the needs of users with disabilities. Use is a systematic model for observing how users behave when using resources, analysing that use, and making changes to improve the user experience. Use is a multidimensional construct that can be examined from various perspectives. The term usability has been used broadly and means different things to different people. Some relate use to ease of use or user-friendliness and consider from an interface effectiveness point-of-view. Types of resources, frequency of use and purpose of use will determine use of library information resources. Terlanga et al. (2019) noted that information is of paramount importance to the development of an individual and for the growth of the nation. Information can be put into several uses and for various purposes. Knowledge and information have become the most important currency of increased wealth and prosperity. The library is the store house of knowledge and information. It provides access to both information resources and information itself. Library helps institutions to achieve the objectivees of producing professionals through the use of information literature.

Statement of Problem
Some people are crime addicted as they have chosen crime as their way of life. This is manifested in their rate of relapsing into crime after release from custodial centres. Incarcerating them without being engaged in educational activities is not enough to reform them. As Kathleen (2018) noted that education opportunities in Custodial Centres are keys to reducing crime, the gap is noted that library could be investigated whether or not it can anchor educational opportunities in the custodial centres. Therefore the following objectives are to be looked upon. Objectives of the Study 1. To investigate the level of availability of library information resources to be used for control of criminality by inmates in custodial centres in South-western Nigeria; 2. To ascertain the level of accessibility of library information resources to the inmates for criminality control in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria , 3. To ascertain the rate of use of library information resources for criminality control by the inmates of custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria Research Questions 1 What is the level of availability of library information resources that are used for criminality control by inmates in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria? 2 What is the level of accessibility of library information resources for control of criminality by the inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria ? 3 What is the rate of use of library information resources for control of criminality by the inmates of custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria ? Population of the Study The population of this study comprised 8,463 inmates in nine custodial centres that had libraries and were located in Southwestern Nigeria. The Preliminary investigation of the researcher revealed that out of this figure 4,253 inmates were convicts and lifers who had five years and more jail term in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The distribution of these inmates is as presented in Table 1.

Sample Size and Sampling Technique
The Two-stage sampling technique was adopted for this study. At first stage, purposive sampling technique was adopted to select the convicts and the lifers who had five or more years' jail term to be used at the custodial centres. They were 4,253 inmates in all. At the second stage, proportionate stratified sampling technique was used where 12% of the inmates at each of the centres were selected to indicate equal representation. This amounted to approximately 508. The breakdown is as presented in Table 2.

Questionnaire Administration and Response Rate
A total of five hundred and eight (508) copies of the questionnaire were administered on the 508 inmates selected across all the nine custodial centres in South-West Nigeria. However, out of the 508 copies of the questionnaire administered, 468 (91.9%) were returned but 455 (89.4%) were found usable and valid for analysis. This represented 89.4% response rate.

Answers to the research Questions
The three research questions that were raised in this study were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency count, percentage, mean and standard deviation. The results are presented as follows:

Research Question 1 What is the level of availability of library information resources that are used for criminality control by inmates in the custodial centres in South-western Nigeria?
The respondents were asked to identify the availability of library information resources used in control of criminality by inmates in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The result is presented in Table 3 below: The result revealed that in custodial centres in South-western Nigeria, the majority of the inmates affirmed that tapes, radio sets, television sets, sound recording gadgets, video and audio cassette were available for use of inmates (mean = 3.20), books were adequately available for use of inmates in custodial centres (mean = 3.06) and pamphlets are parts of reading materials available for the use of inmates in this custodial centre (mean = 2.62). This meant that tapes, radio sets, television and audio, books and pamphlets were the information resources mostly used by inmates in custodial centres in South-western Nigeria for controlling of criminality tendencies among the inmates. However, information resources such as cam coders (mean = 1.33), illustrated books (mean = 1.49), library databases (mean = 1.54), microfilms, graphic materials and motion pictures (mean = 1.85), newspapers and journals and comics (mean = 2.00), encyclopaedias dictionaries, government publications, maps, atlases and globes (mean = 2.25) were not always available to the inmates in the custodial centres.

Discussion of Findings
The findings above on the availability of library information resources which were used for control of criminality by inmates in the custodial centres in South-western Nigeria indicated that only a few library information materials such as tapes, radio sets, television sets, books and pamphlets were available while most of the other types of library information materials such as journals, newspapers, microfilms library databases were not adequately available for control of criminality among inmates in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The onus is therefore on the management of the custodial centres, especially the library to acquire various types of library information resources that will enable the inmates to apply them for recidivism-reduction. This finding corroborates Varadarju (2017) that textbooks were the most available types of library information resources. The finding also agrees with the position of Ajegbomogun and Diyaolu (2018) that if facilities such as current printed materials, printers, Internet/email, multimedia projectors, CDROMs are available, users would have the option of using various types of library information resources and it will eventually create a favourable working environment for the staff and enhance their job performance. Similarly, the present finding supports Iwhiwhu and Okorodudu (2012) that library facilities which include ICT facilities such as Internet, computers, photocopiers, fans and air conditioners in the Edo State central library are not enough to enhance users' satisfaction as the case was found worse in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. However, it is generally believed that an inmate who uses various types of library information resources will gain knowledge from the library and applying the knowledge will let him be aware that libraries are important cornerstones of a healthy community, thereby enhancing recidivismreduction among inmates (Shirley, 2004;Emasealu 2017, Suleiman et al. 2018).

Research question 2: What is the level of accessibility of library information resources to the inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria in recidivism-reduction?
The result of the level of accessibility of library information resources to the inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria for recidivism-reduction is presented in the following Table 4.  The result in above Table revealed that the majority of the respondents affirmed low level of accessibility of Koha or Tinlib software (mean =1.75), bibliographies (mean = 2.32), abstracts (mean = 2.33), and indexes for tracing of journals (mean = 2.37). On the contrary, the level of accessibility in the areas of library staff support to access materials (mean = 3.11), reference librarian support (mean = 2.93), reading list (mean =2.53) and catalogue (mean = 2.51) was found high. Further analysis to find the level of accessibility of library information resources in the custodial centres was done. A test of norm was conducted to examine the level of accessibility of library information resources to inmates for recidivism-reduction in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria, using the decision rule. The mean score range between 1.0 to 1.74 indicated very low level of accessibility, the mean range of 1.75 to 2.49 denoted a low level of accessibility, the mean score range of 2.50 to 3.24 indicated a high level of accessibility while 3.25 to 4.00 indicated a very high level of accessibility of library information resources in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. Thus, the result in the Table showed that the weighted mean score was 2.48 which fell within the low range. It is therefore concluded that the level of accessibility of library information resources to inmates for recidivism reduction in custodial centres in Southwestern was low. The implication of this result is that there was low level of accessibility of most of the library information materials in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. In other words, most of the library information resources cannot be accessed through Koha or Tinlib software, bibliographies, abstracts, indexes for tracing of journals and other information retrieval tools apart from cataloguing, shelf list and staff support.

Discussion of Findings
The result of the finding on the level of accessibility of library information resources to inmates for recidivism-reduction in custodial centres revealed that there was low level of accessibility of most of the library information materials in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. In other words, most of the library information resources cannot be accessed through Koha or Tinlib software, bibliographies, abstracts, indexes for tracing of journals and other information retrieval tools apart from cataloguing, shelf list and staff support. It was apparent that there was low level of accessibility of library information resources by inmates in custodial centres. This could be attributed to lack of proper orientation in the use of library access tools, inadequate collection, overcrowding of the custodial centres as well as the level of education of most of the inmates in the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. Library managers in the custodial centres are duty bound to make library information resources accessible to inmates through the creation of access points and easy retrieval of information for recidivism-reduction of inmates in custodial centres. This finding aligns with Kavita et al. (2012), Aguolu (2002) and Abdulsalami (2013) that there were natural and artificial barriers to free access to information and that the libraries' poor reputation was attributed to lack of accessibility to information resources. Similarly, the finding agrees with Busayo and Elaturoti (2016) that access to library information was low among inmates due the fact that their cells were far from the prison libraries, the general library reading materials were not accessible to them, most of the inmates claimed that they did not have free access to the prison library resources. However, the finding disagrees with the finding of Conrade (2012) that inmates had access to the library and even borrowed library resources.

Research question 3: What is rate of use of library information resources by the inmates of custodial centres in South-western Nigeria ?
The respondents were asked to indicate how often they used library information resources of the custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The result is presented in Table 5 below.  Table 5 shows the descriptive statistic result for research question five on rate of use of library information resources by inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The result revealed that inmates used books most frequently (mean = 2.89), reading of materials that package the profession that I want to embark upon after release (mean = 2.68) and regular consultation of books (mean = 2.54). However, encyclopaedias (mean = 1.93) and newspapers (mean = 2.28) were not frequently used by inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria. In addition, the weighted mean was 2.46, which according to the decision rules, fell below the criteria mean. This implies that the rate of use of library information resources by most of the inmates in custodial centres in Southwestern Nigeria was low.

Discussion of Findings
The finding of this study revealed that the rate of use of library information resources by inmates in correctional centres in Southwestern Nigeria was low. This implies that not every inmate made use of library information resources. In fact, only a few of the inmates made use of the available library materials. This corroborates the findings of Obiano et al. (2020) that the information resources available were books, newspapers and dictionaries: the most available retrieval device that facilitated access to information resources was the library catalogue; and, books were the most frequently utilised information resources by the inmates. Similarly, the finding corroborates Sambo et al. (2017) and Adegboye (2015) that books, newspapers and dictionaries respectively were the most frequently available information resources but not all of these resources and services were frequently utilised by inmates.

Conclusion
The library information resources can be used to reform the inmates in the custodial centres in South-western Nigeria. The library information resources are so important that they can easily change lives for better. It is noted that availability and accessibility of Library Information Resources were must and of necessity in the custodial centres under study. The inmates were ready to use the resources. They even appreciated the available ones that they were using as they adequately noticed that what they were reading and audio facilities they were listening to had impacted their behaviours positively. Investigation showed that books, pamphlets, radio /television and recording facilities were available accessed and utilised by inmates. It was also discovered that despite the fact that many important resources were not available and accessible, the inmates utilised the ones that were available and reformations were taking place in them. Many of the inmates have the propensity to become men of high repute in the society. They only need to be guided and stimulated by the library information resources so as to be rehabilitated while busy with studies and ready to be parts of society again.

 Government and stake holders are to assist in stocking libraries in Custodial
Centres with all necessary information resources  Family members of individual inmates who showed interest in education should be contacted for finance of their child's education.