Academic Librarians’ Perceptions of AI-Based Search Engine Integration in Bangladeshi Private Universities: A Qualitative Study

The purpose of this study is to understand how the adoption and perception of AI-based search engines are approached by librarians in Bangladeshi private universities and explore the factors that limit formal adoption and what ethical and institutional issues inform that disconnect. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with twelve librarians from three private universities and analyzed using systematic thematic analysis, with dual researcher coding, a mechanism to monitor saturation, and member checking. Six themes were developed through the analysis; the adoption of AI-based search engines in informal or peripherally situated ways, positive expectations but skeptical assessments of the technology, structural and economic barriers to adoption, privacy and transparency-related ethical considerations, the significant training deficit, and the need for gradual and strategically managed adoption. These themes are situated within Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory (2003) and DiMaggio and Powell’s Institutional Theory (1983), both of which help illuminate the reasons behind the lag between awareness and adoption. This is the first piece of research to offer original empirical evidence in the context of a under-researched Global South environment. Rather than simply identifying the barrier factors to adoption, this study sheds light on the underlying mechanisms and presents a contextually grounded model for adoption that questions the applicability of Western-developed AI adoption models in resource-scarce library environments.