The effectiveness of smart knowledge services in libraries in Chinese Mainland: a mixed methods study

Purpose The core competitiveness of libraries has shifted from merely possessing diverse resource collections to delivering effective smart knowledge services. However, the development of these services is still in its early stages. This study aims to explore the key factors and their configurations that contribute to the high effectiveness of smart knowledge services in libraries in Chinese Mainland, and to propose viable enhancement strategies within an emerging service context. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on information ecology theory, this study develops a research framework and adopts a mixed methods design that integrates a configurational quantitative approach with qualitative interviews to comprehensively explore the effectiveness of smart knowledge services in libraries. The quantitative phase uses fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis and necessary condition analysis to survey data collected from 386 respondents in Chinese Mainland to identify key influencing factors and their configurations. The qualitative phase involves six semi-structured interviews with librarians, aiming to validate, contextualize and extend the quantitative findings. This integration enhances both the generalizability and contextual richness of the findings. Findings This study identifies three configurations that lead to the high effectiveness of smart knowledge services in libraries in Chinese Mainland and finds that the high-level application of smart technologies and librarians’ high digital intelligence literacy are necessary conditions for this outcome. Interestingly, the identified factors do not explain the low effectiveness of smart knowledge services in libraries. In addition, the interviews uncover further influencing factors and alternative configurations through practical use cases. Originality/value Acknowledging that smart knowledge services are still at a nascent yet promising stage, this study provides a preliminary evaluation of their effectiveness by analyzing emergent practices in Chinese libraries, thereby contributing to the theoretical refinement and practical advancement of smart library services.