As one way to improve the retention rate among Library and Information Science (LIS) professionals of color, we investigated the multiple pathways to their decision to stay in the profession, by analyzing the US nationally representative data. Using a structural equation model (SEM) with multiple mediators, we attempted to illustrate the mechanism governing how pre-existing digital competency and on-the-job digital training influence LIS professional’s decision to stay directly and indirectly through job satisfaction, with an additional path from their pre-existing digital competency at their graduate program to their digital training at their current job. Our results identified the significant indirect effects of prior digital competency and current digital training on their decision to stay among LIS professionals of color, in contrast with insignificant direct effects. In other words, despite the insignificant direct path to their staying decision, prior digital competency had significant positive indirect effects through job satisfaction, and through digital competency and job satisfaction, respectively. Similarly, digital training showed significant positive indirect effects via job satisfaction, contrasting with insignificant direct effects. In other words, LIS professionals of color with a higher level of prior digital competency tended to attend on-the-job digital training more. In turn, these LIS professionals were more likely to show a higher level of job satisfaction and to stay in the profession more. While there were no direct positive roles of digital competency and training, digital competency and training tended to play positive roles in increasing the retention rate among LIS professionals of color, by interacting with each other and job satisfaction. Our study rendered empirical evidence to increase digital competency and training to address the attrition issues among LIS professionals of color. Moreover, our study results evidenced their complex mechanism of influencing LIS minority professionals’ decision to stay in the profession, thus showing the need to diversify the strategies of implementing digital interventions to improve retention.

Keywords: Technology, education, development, minority, SEM.