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LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Biblioteket som offentligt rum och mötesplats: en studie av hur besökarna använder och upplever Malmö stadsbibliotek

Lundström, Josefin LU (2017) SGEK03 20162
Department of Human Geography
Abstract
During the last decade there has been an increased interest in the public library’s function as a place for different activities and social interaction. In this thesis, the intention is to investigate how the central library of Malmö functions as a public space and a meeting place according to its patrons. Largely based on three earlier research projects on North American libraries, the study applies a mixed-methods approach that involves observations of library use and interviews with patrons. Through triangulating the quantitative and qualitative data, the study answers four sub-questions concerning the patrons’ demographical profile, activities, and perception of the services, building and societal role of the central library. To... (More)
During the last decade there has been an increased interest in the public library’s function as a place for different activities and social interaction. In this thesis, the intention is to investigate how the central library of Malmö functions as a public space and a meeting place according to its patrons. Largely based on three earlier research projects on North American libraries, the study applies a mixed-methods approach that involves observations of library use and interviews with patrons. Through triangulating the quantitative and qualitative data, the study answers four sub-questions concerning the patrons’ demographical profile, activities, and perception of the services, building and societal role of the central library. To understand the function as a public space and a meeting place, the results are contextualized by the theoretical concepts of public space, informational place and the public realm. In conclusion, the study suggests that the central library of Malmö works as a dynamic informational place that is used and accessed by a large spectrum of the population in the city. Although not perceived primarily as a place for social activity, the analysis indicates that the central library stimulates an environment that encourages tolerance and social cohesion among its patrons. (Less)
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author
Lundström, Josefin LU
supervisor
organization
course
SGEK03 20162
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
the public realm, Malmö stadsbibliotek, informational place, public library, Public space
language
Swedish
id
8898478
date added to LUP
2017-01-18 13:25:41
date last changed
2017-01-18 13:25:41
@misc{8898478,
  abstract     = {{During the last decade there has been an increased interest in the public library’s function as a place for different activities and social interaction. In this thesis, the intention is to investigate how the central library of Malmö functions as a public space and a meeting place according to its patrons. Largely based on three earlier research projects on North American libraries, the study applies a mixed-methods approach that involves observations of library use and interviews with patrons. Through triangulating the quantitative and qualitative data, the study answers four sub-questions concerning the patrons’ demographical profile, activities, and perception of the services, building and societal role of the central library. To understand the function as a public space and a meeting place, the results are contextualized by the theoretical concepts of public space, informational place and the public realm. In conclusion, the study suggests that the central library of Malmö works as a dynamic informational place that is used and accessed by a large spectrum of the population in the city. Although not perceived primarily as a place for social activity, the analysis indicates that the central library stimulates an environment that encourages tolerance and social cohesion among its patrons.}},
  author       = {{Lundström, Josefin}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Biblioteket som offentligt rum och mötesplats: en studie av hur besökarna använder och upplever Malmö stadsbibliotek}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}