Public librarians' perception of their professional role and the library's role in supporting the public sphere: a multi-country comparison
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-09-2021-0178 |
| Published date | 29 December 2021 |
| Date | 29 December 2021 |
| Pages | 1109-1130 |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Records management & preservation,Document management,Classification & cataloguing,Information behaviour & retrieval,Collection building & management,Scholarly communications/publishing,Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information management,Information & communications technology,Internet |
| Author | Jamie Johnston,Ágústa Pálsdóttir,Anna Mierzecka,Ragnar Andreas Audunson,Hans-Christoph Hobohm,Kerstin Rydbeck,Máté Tóth,Casper Hvenegaard Rasmussen,Henrik Jochumsen,Mahmood Khosrowjerdi,Sunniva Evjen |
Public librarians’perception
of their professional role and the
library’s role in supporting the
public sphere: a multi-
country comparison
Jamie Johnston
Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet), Oslo, Norway
Ag
usta P
alsd
ottir
University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
Anna Mierzecka
University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
Ragnar Andreas Audunson
Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet), Oslo, Norway
Hans-Christoph Hobohm
University of Applied Sciences, Potsdam, Germany
Kerstin Rydbeck
Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
M
at
eT
oth
University of P
ecs, P
ecs, Hungary
Casper Hvenegaard Rasmussen and Henrik Jochumsen
University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mahmood Khosrowjerdi
Høgskolen i Innlandet, Elverum, Norway, and
Sunniva Evjen
Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet), Oslo, Norway
Abstract
Purpose –The overarching aim of this article is to consider to what extent the perceptions of librarians in
Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Norway, Poland and Sweden reflect a unified view of their professional
role and the role of their institutions in supporting the formation of the public sphere and to what extent the
variations reflect national contexts.
Design/methodology/approach –The multi-country comparison is based on online questionnaires. The
central research questions are how do librarians legitimize the use of public resources to uphold a public library
service? How do librarians perceive the role of public libraries as public spaces? How do librarians perceive
their professional role and the competencies needed for it? Consideration is given to how the digital and social
turns are reflected in the responses.
Libraries and
the public
sphere
1109
The co-authors of the article would like to thank co-author and the leader of the ALMPUB research
project Dr. Ragnar Audunson for leading the research and for bringing them together as collaborators.
Funding: The paper is a part of the ALMPUB-project –Archives Libraries and Museums and the
public sphere. The project was financed by the Norwegian Research Council, grant number NFR259052.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/0022-0418.htm
Received 14 September 2021
Revised 25 November 2021
28 November 2021
Accepted 28 November 2021
Journal of Documentation
Vol. 78 No. 5, 2022
pp. 1109-1130
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0022-0418
DOI 10.1108/JD-09-2021-0178
Findings –The results show evidence of a unified professional culture with clear influences from national
contexts. A key finding is that librarians see giving access as central for both legitimizing library services and
for the library’s role as a public sphere institution. Strong support is shown for the social turn in supporting the
formation of the public sphere while the digital turn appears to be a future challenge; one of seemingly
increased importance due to the pandemic.
Research limitations/implications –This study shows that libraries across the seven countries have
expanded beyond simply providing public access to their book-based collections and now serve as social,
learning and creative spaces: both in the physical library and digitally. Qualitative research is needed
concerning librarians’notions of public libraries and librarianship, which will provide a more in-depth
understanding of the changing professional responsibilities and how public libraries recruit the associated
competencies.
Originality/value –The article provides a much needed insight into how librarians perceive the role of public
libraries in supporting the formation of the public sphere and democratic processes, as well as their own role.
Keywords Public libraries, Public sphere, Librarians, Librarianship, Professions, Questionnaire, Comparative
analysis, Digital turn, Social turn
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Public libraries are public sphere institutions tasked with promoting democracy and the free
formation of opinion (Audunson et al., 2019b,2020), yet there is no uniform way to achieve
these overarching goals. The promotion of democracy, provision of equal and free access to
information and support for lifelong learning are frequently stated in the core aims of library
laws and other guidelines. Some laws emphasize the preservation of, and access to, cultural
heritage, others the provision of information relevant to citizenship or the meeting place
function of libraries and provision of arenas for discussion and debate (Rydbeck and
Johnston, 2020). There are other factors that may influence the way laws and guidelines are
carried out in practice, including how the laws are interpreted and translated into practice by
diverse librarians working in diverse contexts. Additionally, environmental factors may
affect how librarians carry out their work. Of relevance here is S€
oderholm and Nolin’s (2015)
assertion that public librarians have had to adapt to two profound environmental change
processes: the digital and social turns.
The digital turn pertains to the digital extension of libraries. Librarianship may be affected to a
greater degree by digitalization than by many other professions. Increased digitalization and
people’s ability to access vast amounts of information has brought the necessity of the librarian’s
roleasinformationintermediaryintoquestion(Nicholas,2012;Brabazon, 2014). Yet, digitalization
poses new challenges, which libraries and librarians can play a role in helping their communities
to overcome (Myburgh and Tammaro, 2013). For example, libraries have made gains in
combating the digital divide through free public access to computers and the Internet, as well as
through digital literacy instruction. Furthermore, librarianshave joined the frontlines in the fight
against the spreading of misinformation and fake news, which have posed challenges to
maintaining an informed and enlightened public discourse (Buschman, 2019). The social turn
pertains to libraries serving as meeting places and places of social interaction and engagement.
The social turn centers on libraries serving as community hubs and inclusive social spaces, as
well as supporting diversity and buildingsocial relations (S€
oderholm and Nolin, 2015). This social
emphasis may require that librarians acquire new skill sets and roles beyond those associated
with information provision and reading promotion (Audunson, 2005;Aabø et al., 2010).
The digital and social turns are relevant for considering how libraries support the
formation of the public sphere; the public sphere being the realm of our social lives in which
matters of importance are discussed and something of a public opinion can be formed
(Habermas, 1989/1962). Relevant to the formation of a comprehensive public sphere,
librarianship is related to seemingly all socio-political spheres in the community; from
providing support for education at all levels to developing digital and youth policies,
JD
78,5
1110
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