Digital Access and User Satisfaction in Academic Libraries: An Integrative Evidence Review with Implications for Kumi University Uganda

Digital access can extend an academic library's reach, but online availability alone does not establish a satisfactory user experience. This article examines the relationship between digital access and user satisfaction and develops implications for Kumi University Library, Uganda. An integrative review of 25 scholarly and professional sources was combined with descriptive secondary analysis of published Ugandan survey counts, virtual-service ratings and Malaysian satisfaction correlations. Sources were retrieved through structured web-assisted searches, publisher records, university repositories and official guidance up to 27 October 2026. Frequencies were recalculated using stated denominators; published means and correlations were retained as distinct measures rather than pooled. In a Kabale University survey of 469 respondents, reported barriers included inadequate training, limited expert assistance and slow connectivity. In a separate study of Makerere and Uganda Christian University, the mean rating for slow internet as a barrier was 3.31 and 2.56 respectively on a five-point agreement scale. A Malaysian study reported positive correlations between satisfaction and information quality, system quality and service quality, with coefficients of .254, .314 and .310. These external observations describe their source populations and do not estimate satisfaction at Kumi. The synthesis indicates that reliable access, task relevance, usable systems and responsive support jointly deserve attention, while cross-sectional evidence cannot establish a causal effect of digital access. The article recommends an audit of access pathways, accessible and mobile-compatible discovery services, curriculumlinked training, coordinated technical support and evaluation combining user feedback with task completion and carefully defined usage metrics. It provides an evidenceinformed framework for service improvement and subsequent local evaluation.