The aim of this bachelor?s thesis is to investigate what role the public library in Sweden may have when it comes to gender equality issues. The questions at issue that were asked, in order to give an answer to the aim, was how the Librarians defined and saw work with equality, how much the steering documents for the library impact and what they are doing in their practice to weaken the dichotomies between the sexes. The theoretical starting point used for this study is three concepts, the gender system, the stereotypes and the gender contract described by the Swedish historian Yvonne Hirdman. The purpose of the three concepts is that gender is a social construction which produces gender stereotypes and a gender order in society, which the library is a part of.

This master's thesis examines information literacy and students in secondary education. The study is framed within a sociocultural perspective of learning and the method used is questionnaires. The major question posed is how and where students seek information. Other questions are if the students critically evaluate and analyse in­formation sources and if teachers and school Librarians cooperate with each other in order to help the students with their assignments.The findings indicate that most students regard information seeking as fact-finding or finding the right an­swers to the question. Only one third of students experienced information seeking as seeking and using informa­tion for understanding a topic.

The purpose for this Master?s thesis is to describe the similarities and the differences of the work at the public libraries? children?s sections, between Sweden and Italy. In order to do that we examine the cultural political presumptions that Swedish and Italian libraries have, such as policies concerning public libraries and children, on a national as well as an international level. We also look at existing attitudes regarding the work at the public libraries? children?s sections, among authors of research literature in our subject.

The purpose of this study is to describe and analyzes how the bookmobile Librarians approach to purchase and selection and the range of views that may exist. The study is based on a qualitative method using a document study and three interviews included. The document study looking closely at public libraries library plans in Vastra Gotalands county. The qualitative interviews gets a closer look at Librarians´approach regarding the purchase and selection and also if there are any similarities or differences between mobile library activities versus the main library.The theoretical framework is based on Sanna Taljas study where she has identified three different perspectives on the library´s music department. These are categorized as the interpretative repertoires and involves three categories of approach to quality.

We were interested in catalogers as human beings and in their reaction to a changed working situation. In the light of the changes which have been made at the libraries during the nineties, we investigated why the very group catalogers reacted with an intense and engaged open debate at the same time as Librarians with special competence didn t seem to react in this way. The open debate about the catalogers changed working conditions was held in Sweden, above all at BIBLIST, which is a forum for library-connected questions. This forum uses an email list made particularly for Librarians. The situation of the Librarians was, to a small extent, also discussed in publications made for the library line of business.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine which role public libraries play or could play within bibliotherapy. The study is based on qualitative interviews with five Librarians who, in one way or another have experienced bibliotherapy activities. Further, we have interviewed two treatment assistants and one counsellor, who have cooperated with the Librarians, to get their view. We have used the following research questions: Which bibliotherapeutic activities, if any, are pursued in public libraries in Sweden, and how do they look upon bibliotherapy? What role do public libraries play/could play within bibliotherapy? Ever since the term bibliotherapy was coined in the beginning of the twentieth century, the definition has been under debate. We have identified four main subjects of discussion.

User-centred acquisitions at three academic librariesA new way of developing collections has been adopted at a number of small academic libraries, user-centred acquisitions. The method implies that the main way of building the collection is by means of receiving suggestions of titles from library users. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate changes in acquisitions of monographs. At a more detailed level it seeks a deeper understanding of what user-centred acquisitions is and how the method effects the acquisitions process. Changes in stock management and the reason why the libraries have chosen the method is investigated as well.

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how Librarians andteachers work together and with the help of other researchtry to understand what influences this cooperation. The studyis based on the following questions:1. These two professional groups have differentprofessional identities and work in two differentprofessional cultures. How does this affect theircooperation?2.

The aim with this thesis is to investigate how Librarians experience communication with children in reference interviews. In today?s interactive community it is meaningful to study how children communicate with the librarian in virtual reference interview as well as in ordinary reference interviews in physical libraries. Focus has been on finding out what children ask about and how they are asking in virtual reference interviews and in ordinary reference interviews, what type of information needs the children have. The study also focuses on which barriers there can be in reference interviews.

This master thesis is a study of a new electronic library reference service-project called Speak instantly to a librarian and the purpose of the thesis is to investigate a new electronic reference service and how the Librarians who work with it experience it. This should be seen from an informational society point of view. The study is conducted from two questions: - What needs do the libraries have and how do they argue for the project and the chat-reference service Speak instantly to a librarian? - How do the Librarians experience the personal work situation in the new reference service, and its use of chat technology? Together with interviews of a selected group of Librarians from the public libraries of Göteborg, Malmö, Nacka and Stockholm, this thesis includes aspects such as the theory of the informational society by Manuel Castells, as well as literary studies of the history of library reference, the development of electronic reference service and the virtual library, and the background and the beginning of the studied project Speak instantly to a librarian. The thesis also contains an overlook of other similar library projects in the United States of America.

Library 2.0 is a term which emerged a few years ago and is frequently discussed. There is no uniform definition of the term but the central aspect of the concept is to encourage increased participation from library users.The aim of this Master's thesis is to investigate if and if so, how the professional role of the librarian is affected by Library 2.0. To do that, we have conducted a case study at the public library in Umeå. Their homepage minabibliotek.se is a practical example of Library 2.0. The homepage is based on interactivity and the library users can participate in various ways.We thougt that qualitive interviews was the best way to gain an understanding for how the Librarians at the public library in Umeå experience how the work with minabibliotek.se affect their professional role.

The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate four children?s Librarians? literature view and their collaboration with pre-schools. My main question at issue is ?What literature view do children?s Librarians in this thesis have and how does this reflect their collaboration with pre-schools??. Another purpose is to study the canon process in relation to children?s libraries and pre-schools.

The aim of this Masters thesis is to explore the image of the librarian from three groups: Librarians, researchers and directors of staff from industrial companies. The purpose was also to study the image of the future librarian as the Swedish School of Library and Information Science at the University College of Borås introduces it. As my theoretical framework I used communication theories and marketing theories. I searched answers to the following questions: - Is there any resemblance at all between the common stereotypes of the librarian and the images given by the participants of the survey? - How do the Librarians view themselves? - What is the image of the librarian among the researchers who use the services of the library? - What is the image of the librarian among the directors of staff from the industrial companies? - What is the image of the librarian given by an educational institution during the basic education? I contacted the participants and asked them to draw a picture of a librarian and write a short text about the picture.

The aim of this Master?s thesis is to study how public Librarians? view mediation of fiction: the knowledge needed, the thoughts expressed about their own and other adults reading of fiction and how the informants define their roles as mediators of fiction. The method used was qualitative interviews with six Librarians at main libraries in Swedish cities of different sizes. The theoretical starting points are Louise M. Rosenblatt?s reader-response theory, Michail Bachtin?s theory of speech genres and Åse Tveit?s and Jofrid Karner Smidt?s theories about mediation of fiction.

The purpose of this master?s thesis is to investigate children?s access to specific children?s activities at Swedish public libraries 2005. The thesis is based on literature studies and qualitative interviews with children?s Librarians, library directors and local politicians at two demographically different libraries in Gothenburg.The sub questions are: What measures exist to promote children?s access to public libraries and children?s activities when it comes to: law and other political statements: different efforts on the state level and different efforts on the municipal level in the direct activity with children at public libraries? What driving forces and needs justify activities for children at public libraries? How will the responsible persons judge that the efforts are sufficient? The result of the study shows that children?s access to library activity has increased in the last couple of years due to reorganization, economic savings with closing down of library affiliates and because libraries have given priority to other things, like IT and new media. Children?s Librarians have got new assignments and less time for children?s activity.The conclusion of our investigation is that children?s Librarians are ambitious in their work, but unfortunately don?t give children?s library activity adequate resources.