Research Project on Students' Preferences: Hardcopy Books vs. eBooks

RESEARCH
PROJECT
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................4
RESEARCH TITLE...............................................................................................................................5
RESEARCH STATEMENT...................................................................................................................5
1

RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES..................................................................................................6
LITERATURE REVIEW........................................................................................................................7
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY...........................................................................................................12
RESEARCH DESIGN.....................................................................................................................12
DATA COLLECTION.....................................................................................................................12
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF SURVEY AND QUESTIONNAIRE................................13
SAMPLING METHODOLOGY.......................................................................................................14
LIMITATIONS..............................................................................................................................14
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY......................................................................................................14
RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY.........................................................................................................14
ETHICAL CONSIDERATION..........................................................................................................15
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS............................................................................................16
TIMELINE OF RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES......................................................................................17
LOGBOOK...................................................................................................................................17
GANTT CHART............................................................................................................................18
DATA GATHERING AND ANALYSIS.................................................................................................20
RESULT.......................................................................................................................................30
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS...............................................................31
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................34
2

3

RESEARCH PROJECT
INTRODUCTION
The impact of the digital technology can be seen in the educational system also as the advances
in the digital technology has led to the opening up many areas or avenues of the learning.
Technology has made information transmissible, accessible from any point in the world and by
all peoples groups (Ball, et al. 2018). The modern education is based on the digital technology
by the use of the E-learning and many more. Traditional education has been replaced by the
digital education which leads to the more scope and opens up a new era of the education. It
also helped the students and teachers to explore their learning and knowledge with the use of
the modern and digital technology (Goldin and Katz, 2018).
The modern technologies have led to the advancements in the form of the phones, eBooks,
tablets etc. all become to have the popular and effective reading standard and material. Hard
copy books are the permanent copy or the reproduction which is in the form of the physical
object that can be used by the person directly as it is transmitted and displayed data. It is the
electronic book which is available in the form of the digital mode which consists of the images,
text or both which is readable only on the electronic devices (Chauhan, 2017). There are various
formats of eBooks like PDF and EPUB etc. The best device for the reading eBooks is the Amazon
Kindle. In a research, it was found that approx. 92% of college students do their reading in an
old-fashioned way i.e., textbooks (Gray and Howard, 2017).
Thus this research project is based on the preferences and choices of the students for the hard
copy books and eBooks. This research project will analyse the effect of the digitalisation on the
reading and learning habits (Wells and Sallenbach, 2015). The objectives of this research will be
based on the choices of the students for the reading and learning. Further, there will be the
deep understanding and explanation of the digitalisation impact on the education in the form
of the literature review. For the undertaker of this research project, there will be the
conduction of the primary and secondary research through which methodology will be
prepared with the help of the primary and secondary data sources. In the end, there will be the
discussion and findings based on the research and in context with the choices of the hardcopy
books vs. eBooks (Reid, 2016).
4

RESEARCH TITLE
A study and analysis of the students’ choices and preferences in context with the ICON College:
hardcopy books vs. eBooks.
RESEARCH STATEMENT
Do students of the ICON College prefer using hardcopy books or eBooks?
5

RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The aim of this project is to study and analyse the choices and preferences of the ICON Colleges
students for the use of the hardcopy books or eBooks. Following are the objectives of this
research project:
 To examine the students of Icon college choices for the use or the hardcopy books and
eBooks
 To analyse the number of students of the Icon college using only hardcopy books or only
eBooks
 To analyse the number of students of the Icon college using only eBooks
 To determine the level to which the pricing affects preferences of the students
 To evaluate if the online library is sufficient for the Icon College students.
6

LITERATURE REVIEW
There are moderate gains of learning due to the digital technology and the technology should
be used for the teaching supplement and should not be used in the place of the traditional
approaches Dobler (2015). Different technologies have the ability and potential for bringing
changes in the learning and teaching process. According to Mizrahi, (2015) it has also been
analysed that the small group learning and the collaborative technology use is more effective
than the individual learnings. Also the digital technology impact is big on the academic
methods. This research identifies and studies the technology effects on the learning and
teaching. It also examines the recent trends in the digital world in respect of the education
system. The aim and the objectives is to identify the applications and implications used for the
digital technologies for the teaching and learning in the colleges and schools as the digital
education has been prevailed in the modern education system. With the eBooks becoming
extensive, many studies have initiated to be carried out in respect of digital catalogues, reading
habits, and eBooks devices (Diener, et al. 2017). Large portion of these studies have aimed on
the students of the universities. This is an unavoidable conclusion that the eBooks are
becoming popular for the academic libraries for the electronic journals emergence (Gilbert and
Fister, 2015)
According to the Johnson and Buck (2014), the new infrastructure of the technology has
improved the universities ability to provide the impartially for non-traditional students groups
which includes the people with the other commitments like full time employment or living in
the area which is very far to allow the access to the college campus. Tosun, (2014) also stated
that the online population of the students is increasing day by day. The students have changed
their learning activities in providing the greater focus on the collaboration and the team
projects. And this has led to the requirement of the new learning styles and purposes. The
conception of the possessing content has drastically changed which more concerns about the
long-term access and the preservation which should be addressed. The cost of the providing
and acquiring the online resources like eBooks are less the print counterparts (Baron, et al.
2017). As per the Raynard, (2017) the electronic environment has provide the academic
libraries users to a larger collection of the books and Journals which cannot be possible in the
7

case of the print environment. The success of the online journals and eBooks there would have
been the transition and transformation of the electronic books from the print books Alhammad
and Ku, (2016). The strengths of the eBooks can be seen in the form of the accessibility and the
full text portability and functionality. These all factors allow them to the use the eBooks in a
more efficient way. But the disadvantages include the non-standardisation and complexity of
the interfaces through which the eBooks limit its access to the single user at a single time Kohn,
(2018). Nixon et al. 2015 also added to this issue which can also be seen in the case of the print
book but the users have the view that the online available material is more accessible and
reliable as it can be accessed at any time. The relationship between the libraries and the
publishers in respect of the eBooks is complex as in the case of the print environment, for
providing the adequate access for its users libraries use to purchase the multiple copies of the
books. The library need and requires only one copy of the book though allowing the book
accessible on the electronic media and which can be used by the full and whole population so
the students of the Colleges prefers the eBooks as it need to purchase by the every individual
and which can be shared within the whole group that saves the cost of the students and the
Colleges (Walsh, 2016) But it makes disadvantages for the publishers who are publishing the
multiple copies of the books. As a result of this the publishers does not publish their all print
books in the form of the eBooks and limits the number of the books through the online media.
Moreover, there will be the restrictions of the Digital rights management (DRM) have been
imposed on eBooks for limiting the access to title and controlling the way in which the users
can interact and communicate with them. Conversations between the libraries and publishers
for the agreement on the mutual acceptable business models are continue to its complexities
(Johnston, et al. 2015).
Chou, (2016) also added that the hard copy Books are used in more different and varied way
which depends on the objectives and purpose they want to fulfil. On the other hand,
Researchers need to compare the data and the information across the different titles and books
which can be a challenged for the electronic environment. EBooks printing is not feasible due
to the chapter’s lengths and the copyright law, DRM is also the barriers they should be in the
8

flexibility. Thus the eBook platforms are not fully satisfactory for the purpose of the researches
(Mulholland and Bates, 2014).
In addition to this Swindler (2016), has presented the evolution of the digitalisation in the
education system. They have advised that the advancements in the technologies have
transformed and changed the way of acquiring knowledge and learning from the distant
universities with the help of the accessing the different sources of data and the information
with the use of the internet services (Wang and Bai, 2016). The technological development and
advancement have played a crucial and critical role in bringing the changes in the institutions
and the societies. It has been predicted and estimated by the various researchers that the new
information technologies have transformed and changed the process of the learning and
teaching. There are various arguments which have been made in regard of the importance of
the innovation and the new technologies in the education system which helps in coping with
the changes and developments made in the educational environment (Walters, 2014). There
are many possibilities of offering the customisation for boosting the people learnings. There is
an additional support given for the contribution of the e-textbooks. The study and the research
conducted by the authors and the journalists that it has been observed that there is a positive
relationship of utilising the web-based technologies. It has also been observed that the new
technology adaption had brought the new challenges in the institutions in the form of the
eBooks usage (McGowan and Stephens, 2015). As most of the students who are doing job full
time or part time they use to prefer the eBooks for their readings and they go for the online
courses instead of the classrooms and the hard copy books. In addition to this Lopatovska, et al.
(2014) have identified that there is a great influence of the sociology on the educational
systems. This research and paper will discuss the advantages and the limitations of the
technologies in the educational systems. And the current trends prevailing in the market for
the academic researchers will also be explained and discussed.
As per the Yuan, et al. (2018) it is necessary and must for the teachers to enhance the skills and
knowledge in respect of the use of the applications of the technologies as well as the
technology integration within the specific content areas. The integration of the technical skills
can be needed for the development in order to enhance the online education programmes (Van
9

Riper, et al. 2017). The various researchers and the analyst have been observed that the current
and recent trends in the education have brought the more advancement in the education
systems. Also, the students who are not engaged in the jobs rely on the hard copy books while
the students who are engaged in the jobs prefer the eBooks (Ji, et al. 2014). It has also been
assessed and observed that the present group of the students who are the savvy of the
technology uses the eBooks in respect of the textbooks instead of the computer use. Moreover,
the most of the participants in the research project have preferred the printed books for the
learning and readings. It is due to the special features prevailing in the eBooks and their
accessibility and costing. Along with this, there are some limitations of using the eBook as it is a
not much reliable source for the reading and learning as it has not been checked by the authors
(Joseph, 2015).
Cusker, (2016) has added that the eBooks are very trending in the modern educational system
as it is very convenient as compared to the Hardcopy books. But most of the students of the
colleges use the hard copy books as the eBooks are not those much successful as compared to
the Hardcopy books. Moreover, it is not reliable for the practical approaches to finance and
accounts. So it can be said that the research paper has found that the students of colleges
prefer more the eBooks (Corlett-Rivera and Hackman, 2014).
EBooks research has been conducted in the past 12-18 years which focused on the usage of the
e-book in respect of the subject, book title and user’s types in libraries etc. (Walton, 2014). It
was found that some students have more access to some subjects compared to other subjects.
For example, eBooks mostly used for the subjects like Economics, Business and computer
science etc. The results and study were found similar in the research conducted by the Zhang
and Niu, (2016) which says that the most common subjects used for the study are Psychology,
Computers, medicine, arts, religion, and general social sciences etc. The subjects which are
least popular for the e-books were law, business, history, management, economics, literature
etc. In addition to this Ngafeeson, and Sun, (2015), has stated that those students who study
with the help of the eBooks have the view that it is easily available around the clock and are
easily searchable. But some students have found it as the undesirable as it is very hard to
browse and read.
10

Marie Johnson, (2016) have found that the preferences for the EBooks are affected by the
factors like computer use, comfort and gender. In a large-scale survey in the UK in which 120
universities have participated in a survey and according to which there is a ratio of 62% students
who have accepted the use of the eBooks (Larson, 2015). The research also found that the
students view the best advantage of using the eBook as it is easily accessible. A different study in
parallel to the study of the previous research has found that the students of the universities
prefer the printed books to the eBook and another study has revealed that the students were
focused on the preferences of eBooks to the printed Books (Gueval, et al. 2015).
Rennie, et al. 2017 reported that results of a study and research had reviewed that the use of
the print books and eBooks versions of 2,852 books for a 1 year period. They have concluded
and found that the different disciplines peoples use the eBooks and print books in a different
manner. They have also found that there is an 11% more use of the eBooks than the printed
books. And also suggested that there is a rapid growth of eBook adoption. It has also been
resulted out that the titles used in the eBooks are same as the printed books (Shepherd, and
Arteaga, 2014).
According to the Murray, (2018), there is an emphasis given on the eBooks use within the
academic groups die to the regular and continuous expansion of the eBooks. It has been found
that the major number of the people share the book in the market. And the eBook expansion
can be continuing as the mode of publishing the textbooks. It has also been explained that the
libraries and the Colleges use the eBooks in an effective and efficient manner (LaMagna, et
al.2015).
11

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH DESIGN
As a research design, this research project is based on the qualitative research methods. The
analysis of this research project is based on the collection of the data through primary and
secondary research. This research project has the conclusive research design which is specific in
the verifying the insights about the preferences of the students for the eBooks vs. hard copy
books of the Icon College UK (Knowlton, 2016).
Qualitative research is used to have an understanding of the different opinions, reasons,
preferences and motivations. It helps in providing the insights into the problem which aid in
developing the hypothesis and ideas for the potential research. It is also used in that case which
requires the uncovering the trends in the opinions and thoughts. The common methods used
for the qualitative research include interviews, focus groups, and observations. The survey with
the help of the questionnaire will be conducted for analyzing the student's preferences of Icon
College in context with the hard copy books vs. eBooks. Thus this research is conducted for
gaining deep insights about the opinions and reasons for choosing the hardcopy books or
eBooks so it is indicating that this research is focused on gaining an understanding about some
opinions (Parsons, 2014).
DATA COLLECTION
Data collection is an appropriate method and an essential step to be considered for successful
completion of the research project. It is the process and methods of measuring and gathering
the data and information on the variables of interest. The data of this research has been
collected from the relevant sources. The data collection of this research is based on the two
methods viz. secondary methods of data collection and primary methods of the data collection.
Primary data collection methods are also comprised of the two methods that are quantitative
and qualitative methods. This research project is based on the data collection methods as it
includes the questionnaires survey and the questionnaire will be filled by the 100 students as
the respondents of the research project. The respondents will be the students of the Icon
12

College UK. The questionnaire will be based on the topic "Preferences of Icon Colleges students
for the use of the Hardcopy books and eBooks (Terpend, et al. 2014).
Secondary data is a kind of that data which has been already published in the newspapers,
books, magazines, online portals, journals etc. There is a plenty of the data available in these
sources which focused on the research area and topic. Thus for conducting this research project
data has been collected from the secondary sources also like online portals, previous research
papers, journals, articles etc. which focused on the above-mentioned topics. There will be the
collection of the 100 journals, articles, research papers etc. Out of which 80 collections will be
read in depth which is goes through the preliminary screening. A meta-analysis will also be
done for these 80 collections (Huang, et al. 2017).
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF SURVEY AND QUESTIONNAIRE
Most of the surveys use the questionnaires for the base of their research. Surveys help in
deciding the changes in needs and many other questions can be answered with the help of the
survey. Main benefits of the survey are it is inexpensive and it can be used for sending to the
different locations by using email, mail or telephone. It allows finding the answers on a
particular topic. And it is an effective method of getting the opinions of a large number of the
people but it has some disadvantages like it is can take more time and uses only close-ended
questions which makes a limited opinion.
The questionnaire flexibility can be seen in its efficiency and it can be completed quickly and
easily. It is very cost effective than the face to face interviews. It is the most popular
methodology which is competed in a simple way. The main disadvantages of using
questionnaire are the failure of selecting the appropriate questionnaire and the right questions
and it limits the scope of the collecting the data. Sometimes it also fails in the getting the valid
and reliable answers as most of the respondents do not take proper care in filling the
questionnaire (Becker, 2015).
13

SAMPLING METHODOLOGY
Sampling methodology comprises of the selecting the sample size out of the total populations.
This research method is based on the random sampling methodology which will be conducted
by the selection of the college students. For conducting the primary research, the project is
focused on conducting the survey with the help of the questionnaire which will be filled with
the help of the 100 respondents (Saleh, and Mashhur, 2015). For the conduction of the
secondary research, meta-analysis and preliminary screening will be done of the 100 articles,
journals, online research papers etc. Out of which 80 articles will be analyzed in depth for the
completion of the research papers.
LIMITATIONS
The main limitation of this research paper is a use of the questionnaire as the primary research
methodology which limits the scope as only 100 students will participate in the survey that will
give the limited results and findings. The other limitation is the limited time and resource
scarcity for the conduction of the research project. One of the limitations can be seen in the
form of the responses of the students as most of the questionnaire can be filled in correctly.
Secondary data collection can also be the limiting factor for this research (Bailey, et al. 2014).
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
The limitations of this study can be the attainment of the aims and objectives of the research.
Most of the respondents are unwilling to give the responses which lead to the errors and
mistakes in the actual results and findings. There are also the various limitations of this research
project as the students selected as the respondents also act as the limitations of the study.
Moreover, there may be the legal considerations which may also act as limitations of the study
(Saleh, and Mashhur, 2015).
RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY
The objectives and aim of the research project are reliable and valid as this research paper will
able to attain its objectives. The aims and objectives of this research are based on the
preferences of students in selecting the hard copy books and eBooks which will be attained by
14

doing a survey with the help of the questionnaire. And this questionnaire will be filled by the
students of the Icon colleges that will give the appropriate findings and results (Hobbs, and
Klare, 2015). The validity of this research project is limited to only the present technologies and
will not focus on the upcoming and future trends of the digital technology.
ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
The participants of the research project have been given the knowledge of the research project.
They were also having the understanding of the aims, objectives, purpose of this research
project. The personal information, their filled questionnaire were not disclosed to any other
students or any other individual. This research project has maintained the confidentiality of the
respondents in every manner. The research project does not make any discrimination and
partiality on the basis of any caste, religion, seniority, degree, education, designation, status
etc. The primary research has been done by taking and considering the filled questionnaire of
all the respondents irrespective of the gender and seniority (Buchanan, et al. 2015).
15

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
The presentation of the data for this research project has been done with the help of using the
pie charts, tables, MS-Excel etc. Quantitative data can be presented by the pie chart whereas
the qualitative data is being presented by the MS –Excel and tables. The results and findings of
this research have been discussed in the form of the numerical figures. Moreover, some facts
and figures are presented in the form of the statistics. There is also a graphical presentation of
the results in the form of the pie charts. The analysis of the data and the research has been
done with the help of the assessment of the results of the questionnaire in the form of the
graphs and pie charts (Hobbs, and Klare, 2015).
16

TIMELINE OF RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES
The timescale of the activities and research should be set so that the research can be
conducted within the particular time frame. And the researcher also can complete the activities
and tasks within the time period given and can schedule their activities related to the research
and can complete the research project in an efficient manner. Following are the timeline of this
research project and the activities (Buchanan, et al. 2015).
LOGBOOK
SERIAL
NUMBER
TASKS AND
ACTIVITIES
TIME SCALE
IN WEEKS
ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN
1 Planning the
research and
determining the
research topics
1 week Identify and assess the problem, issue or the
topic and doing planning of the research
project.
2 Preparing the aims
and objectives of
the research project
1 week Setting the aims and objectives of the
research project which should be relevant to
the selected topic
3 Deciding the
research
methodologies
1 week Outline the type of research that will be
conducted for analyzing of the data
4 Conducting
literature reviews
2 week Previous and old articles, journals and
magazines will be reviewed for gaining the
understanding of the research topics.
5 Data collection 2 week Data collection will be done with the help of
the primary and secondary sources related to
the research problems.
6 Analyzing and
Interpreting data
1 weeks Specific technologies and tools will be applied
for the analysis of the data which is collected
17

through the primary and secondary sources.
7 Findings and
discussions
2 weeks The analyzed data will comes to the
appropriate results which will be discussed.
And it will be presented with the help of the
presentation tools and various techniques and
methods.
8. Conclusions and
recommendations
1 week The final outcomes will be given in the form of
the conclusions and recommendation will be
made.
GANTT CHART
ACTIVITI
ES
ACTIONS TAKEN TIME REQUIRED (IN WEEKS)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 Planning the research
and determining the
research topics
2 Preparing the aims and
objectives of the
research project
3 Deciding the research
methodologies
4 Conducting literature
reviews
5 Data collection
18

6 Analyzing and
Interpreting data
7 Findings and discussions
8 Conclusions and
recommendations
19

DATA GATHERING AND ANALYSIS
Question 1
Table of response
Hardcopy books 65
EBooks 15
Both 15
Other 5
TOTAL 100
Do you prefer eBooks or Hardcopy books for
the study?
Hardcopy books
EBooks
Both
Other
This is the main question of the survey as it is focused on the research project aims and
objectives. It is helpful in assessing the preferences of the students of eBooks over hard copy
books. It was observed that 65 per cent students prefer the hardcopy book for their study while
only 15% students prefer the eBooks for their study. Apart from this approx. 15% students use
to prefer both media for their study. On the basis of the data found it can be said that the
number of students is high who are using the hard copy books for their study.
Question 2
20

Table of response
Hardcopy books 45
EBooks 30
Both 10
Don’t Know 15
TOTAL 100
Whose price is high eBooks or hard copy
books?
Hardcopy books
Ebooks
Both
Don’t Know
The research aims and objectives are also focused on the decision of students for selecting the
eBooks and hard copy books which are affecting due to their pricing. So it has been found that
the 45 per cent of the respondents have a view that the pricing of the hard copy books are high
whereas the 30 per cent of the respondents have a view that the EBooks are costly and 10 per
cent respondents respond that the pricing of both books is high. So, the majority of the
respondents has a view that the prices of the hard copy books are high.
Question 3
Table of response
21

Online library 20
University library 40
Both 25
None 15
TOTAL 100
Do you use online library or university library
for the study?
Online library
University library
Both
None
The research objectives also focused on the use of the online library vs. university library. Thus
ton the basis of the survey it has found that the 20 per cent of the students uses the online
library while approx. 40% students use the university library for the reading and study which is
just double of the usage of the online library. Whereas the 25% of respondents use both
libraries for the study so it can be concluded that the number of the students are more which
are using the online library which is depicting that the hardcopy book users are more than the
eBooks.
Question 4
22

Table of response
Yes 40
No 50
Don’t know 10
TOTAL 100
Is online library is sufficient for the reading
and study?
Yes
No
Don't Know
The students were also asked about the online library as it is sufficient for their study or not
then the result was found that the 40% of the respondents agree that the online library is
sufficient for the study while 50% of the respondents deny the statement that only online
library is not sufficient for the study and reading while 10% of the respondents do not know
about the statement. So it can be concluded that the only online library or EBooks are not
sufficient for the students for gaining the knowledge and understanding and for deeper study.
Question 5
Table of response
Strongly disagree 5
23

Disagree 15
Neutral 10
Agree 30
Strongly agree 40
Total 100
Do you agree the pricing of the e-books and
hard copy books affects the student’s
preferences?
Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neutral
Agree
Strongly agree
The research aims and objectives also focused on the preferences of the students for using the
eBooks and hard copy books on the basis of the prices. So it has been found that the 40% of
overall students strongly agree with the fact that the pricing of the hard copy books and ebooks
are affecting the preferences of the students whereas the 30 per cent of the students agreed on
the above statement. Thus it can be said that there is a variant difference between the pricing
of the eBooks and hard copy books.
Question 6
Table of response
Hard copy books 45
24

EBooks 20
Both 35
Total 100
What you mostly use for the studying and
reading the practical subjects: Hard copy
books or eBooks?
Hard copy books
Ebooks
Both
The research questionnaire also focused on the purpose of using the eBooks or hard copy books
and what the students use for the exploration and study of the practical subjects like
Economics, Accounts, Statistics, Finance etc. then it has been found in a study that the 45% of
the respondents use the hard copy books for the study and reading of the practical subjects
while 20% of the respondents have agreed that they use EBooks for their study of the practical
subjects whereas the 35 % of the respondents use both sources for the study of the practical
subjects.
Question 7
Table of response
Hard copy books 50
25

EBooks 30
Both 15
None 5
Total 100
What did you have purchase in the last year
among the e-Book or hard copy books?
Hard copy books
EBooks
Both
None
The study has also focused on the purchasing of the eBooks and hard copy books in some last
years. So the study reveals that the nearly half of the respondents have purchased the hard
copy books i.e. 50% of the respondents have purchased the eBooks while left half of the
respondents have purchased the Ebooks and both. Nearly 30% of the respondents have
purchased the EBooks for the study and 15% of the respondents have purchased both books in
previous years. So this is also making the conclusions that the hardcopy books are mostly used
by the students of the Icon Colleges.
Question 8
Table of response
Computer 50
26

Kindle 30
I-pad 15
Smartphone or iPhone 5
Total 100
Which device will you use for reading E-
books?
Computer
Kindle
I-Pad
Smartphone or Iphone
Students were also asked about the use of the device for the study of the E-books. All the
students use different devices for their study. So it was found that the 50 per cent of the
students use the computer for their reading through eBooks while 30 per cent of the students
use the kindle for the reading through the eBooks. 15 per cent of the students uses the I-pad
for the reading of eBooks and remaining students use the smartphone or iPhone for their
reading. Thus it can be concluded that the most of the number of the students use the
computer for their study.
Question 9
Table of response
Hardcopy books 50
27

E-books 30
Both 20
Total 100
Which one would you buy when the prices of
the EBooks and Hardcopy books will be
same?
Hardcopy books
Ebooks
Both
The respondents were also asked the question that if the prices of hardcopy books and E-books
are same then what they will prefer. Thus the study depicts that the 50% of the students and
respondents will buy Hardcopy books whereas only 30% of the students and respondents will
buy the EBooks. And only 20% of the respondents will buy both kinds of books. SO it can be
concluded that irrespective of the prices the preferences for the selection of the books does not
changes.
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Question 10
Table of response
Yes 55
No 25
Don’t know 20
Total 100
Do you agree that the hardcopy books are
more accessible and reliable than the
eBooks?
Yes
No
Don't know
The students were also asked that of which kind of books are reliable and accessible for them.
Then the researchers found that the 55% of the respondents and the students considered that
the hardcopy books are more reliable and accessible while the 25% of the respondents were
not in the favour of the hardcopy books. So, this questionnaire results also came in the favour
of the hard copy books.
29

RESULTS AND FINDINGS
From the above discussion, it can be said that the students of the Icon colleges use to prefer the
hardcopy books in respect of the e-books. It is also found that the prices of the EBooks also do
not impact their preferences level as they use to buy or read hard copy books only. It also
shows that the hard copy books are more reliable and accessible than the eBooks. The
hardcopy books are mostly used for the study of the practical subjects also. It also results that
the online library is not sufficient for the students they have to take the help of the university
libraries. Thus, at last, it can be summarised that the students of the Icon colleges use to prefer
the hard copy books more as compared to the e-books. So the result of this research project is
that the preferences of the hard copy books are more than the e-books.
30

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Thus the aim of this research project has been fulfilled and attained which was focused on the
analysing and identifying the preferences of the students in selecting the eBooks and hard copy
books. The literature review also states that the hard copy books are always preferable over the
eBooks. Many researchers have concluded that instead of the digitalisation the student’s select
more hard copy books as compared to the eBooks (Gurung, 2017).
According to the primary research, it has been found that the student of the Icon colleges
prefers mostly the Hard copy books and they use the e-books in some special subjects whereas
the some of the students prefer the eBooks due to its cost, reliability and quick access. Also, the
reason for selecting the hard copy books is it is available in one place, and the matter is reliable
and valid which can be relied upon. Other reasons of selecting the hardcopy books are the
eBooks cannot be studied for the reading of the practical subjects like accounts, finance,
management and many other subjects like medicine, physiology, statistics etc. (Bozkurt, et al.
2016). EBooks are preferred by those students who use to do part-time or full-time jobs. Thus
it can be said that the popularity of the hardcopy books is high as compared to the eBooks. The
students have selected the hard copy books because of the many reasons. The hardcopy books
are easy to carry, most of the students like to hold the books in their hands while the e-books
do not give the feeling of the study. Students have also view that the hardcopy books are more
accessible, valid and reliable than the eBooks. The students also do not see the prices of the
hard copy books for the purchasing. They also reviewed that they also cannot rely only on the
hard copybooks as they need to go through the online books also for some of the topics and
subjects. So they use both online and university library both but most of the students use the
university libraries more as compared to the online libraries (Bakri, and Willett, 2017).
According to the secondary research it has been found that there is a considerable trend which
is increasing for the adaption of the eBooks as its cost is very low. The students don’t need to
carry the eBook everywhere and it is accessible at any time. It is not heavy in weight and very
convenient. But the factors which affect the popularity and preferences of the hard copy book
are high. Hard copy books are easy to make the notes, hard copy books allow the students to
be more concentrated and it avoids the distractions and does not harm the eyes which lead to
31

the problem of a headache sometimes. Another reason for selecting the hard copy books are
its in-depth description and details which is not available in the eBooks. In case of the diagrams
and figures the eBooks are not so much effective as the hard copy books are Bozkurt, et al.
2016).
According to the survey it has found that th3 65% of selected populations prefer the hard copy
books for their reading and study. While 50% of the selected students have purchased the hard
copy books in some last years. So it can be said that the hardcopy books are selects and
preferred by the students of the Icon College. Despite some respondents indicating that they do
choose digital to the textbook and this is a challenge for the publishing industry to make more
and harder copy books and makes them available online or through digital ways. Most of the
students are also not aware of that they don't know that the digital copies of some textbooks
are online available (Gurung, 2017). Most of the evidence also suggests that the most of the
students are not have the awareness of the lower price of the ebooks to the hard copies. In
respect of the pricing, the students don’t get the full amount or price of selling the hard copy
books back to the bookstore at the end of their session or semester. But the students got some
amount in return which is not possible in the case of the eBooks.
Instead of rising the sales of the eBooks in recent years, eBooks are not in the position of the
replacing the hardcopy books. Both the type of the books has unique features and attributes
which serve the different functions for meeting the needs of the readers. This may be varied as
per the contextual, individual demographic and situational factors. Future research and study
should need to consider the situation and context of the individual the functions of the print
and ebook (Bakri, and Willett, 2017).
Thus it is recommended through this research project that the students should increase their
awareness for the eBooks and online libraries so that they can benefit from the advantages of
the eBooks. This study shows that the numbers of students are more who are using the print
books and they are not aware of the use and benefit of the eBooks. Also, it can be also
suggested to the future researchers who will carry the same research that the sample size
should be taken more than will give appropriate and proper results. Moreover, there should be
the selection of more research papers, journals, articles etc. so that it will give more effective
32

and efficient findings. While carrying out this research project it has been observed that there
are some difficulties and troubles which have been faced in terms of the time and cost (Bakri,
and Willett, 2017). So the further researcher should consider the time and duration while
carrying out this research papers. Some recommendations to the universities and the lecturers
are that they should provide the more online lectures notes and should start the online libraries
also so it can also reduce the cost of the universities also as it will also save the space of
arranging the books in the shelves and marinating the whole library which needs more people,
time, cost for managing the whole library departments. The lecturer should also provide the
online lectures notes, eBooks and other digital sources of study materials. Students also
understand the importance of the eBooks as it is beneficial for them also in terms of the cost,
time and many other factors. Libraries of the universities can provide the material of the
EBooks in the electronic format also which will reduce the situation of the unavailability of the
same title and author book at a single point of time (Aharony, and Bar-Ilan, 2016).
33

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APPENDIX
QUESTIONNAIRE
1. Do you prefer eBooks or Hardcopy books for the study?
a) Hardcopy books
b) EBooks
c) Both
d) Other
2. Whose price is high eBooks or hard copy books?
a) Hardcopy books
b) EBooks
c) Both
d) Don’t know
3. Do you use online library or university library for the study?
a) Online library
b) University library
c) Both
d) None
4. Is online library is sufficient for the reading and study?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Don’t know
5. Do you agree the pricing of the e-books and hard copy books affects the student’s
preferences?
39

a) Strongly disagree
b) Disagree
c) Neutral
d) Agree
e) Strongly agree
6. What you mostly use for the study and reading for the practical subjects: Hard copy
books or eBooks?
a) Hard copy books
b) EBooks
c) Both
d) None
7. What did you have purchase in the last year among the e-Book or hard copy books?
a) E-Book
b) Hard copy book
c) Both
d) None
8. Which device you will use for reading E-books?
a) Kindle
b) Computer
c) I-pad
d) Smartphone or IPhone
9. Which one would you buy when the prices of the EBooks and Hardcopy books will be
same?
a) Hardcopy books
b) E books
40

c) Both
10. Do you agree that the hardcopy books are more accessible and reliable than the
eBooks?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Don’t know
41