De-Graft Johnson Dei, Karim Awudu
The rapid expansion of institutional repositories (IRs) has heightened concerns about digital rights management (DRM), copyright protection, content authenticity, and long-term digital preservation, particularly in developing countries where institutional and technological capacities remain constrained. This study examines the feasibility of adopting blockchain technology as a DRM solution for Ghanaian institutional repositories and evaluates whether its application is transformative or largely aspirational. Guided by the Technology–Organization–Environment (TOE) framework and Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory, the study employed a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design that integrated quantitative survey data with qualitative interviews with ICT directors, repository managers, academic librarians, systems librarians, and faculty members from eight Ghanaian universities. The findings reveal low DRM maturity across institutional repositories. 40% of participating institutions lacked formal DRM mechanisms. Although awareness of blockchain technology was moderately high among respondents, substantial disparities existed across stakeholder groups, with ICT personnel demonstrating higher levels of understanding than faculty members and academic librarians. Institutional readiness for blockchain adoption remained generally poor, constrained by inadequate infrastructure, funding limitations, insufficient technical expertise, weak policy frameworks, and low organizational preparedness. Despite these limitations, stakeholders expressed strong support for blockchain’s potential to strengthen tamper-proof authorship verification, enhance content authenticity and integrity, improve transparency through immutable audit trails, and automate copyright management through smart contracts. The study further suggests that capacity building, phased implementation strategies, open-source platforms, interdisciplinary collaboration, and institutional policy alignment are critical pathways for integrating blockchain into institutional repositories. The study concludes that blockchain-enabled DRM in Ghanaian IRs is a promising, emerging innovation and that its successful implementation depends on sustained investment in digital infrastructure, institutional reforms, technical training, and supportive regulatory frameworks.