En profession med mission Barnbibliotekariens yrkesidentitet
ProfessionBarnbibliotekarierYrkesidentitetKallMissionDocumentationInformationLibrary scienceArchivisticsArkiv- och bibliotekskunskapDokumentationSocial Sciences
TitleThe profession of Children's Librarians. Identity and vocation.AbstractThe aim of this Master's thesis is to investigate the professional identity of Children's Librarians in order to contribute to a deeper understanding to the professions of librarians. This places the thesis in the field of Library and Information Science that studies the profession. The definition we use to understand profession suggests that all librarians take an active part in negotiating their professional role and library enterprise.Our empirical material consists of interviews with eight Children's Librarians. Using a qualitative method was the best way to gain an understanding for the participant's own experiences of their professional identity. The theoretical tools used in the analysis consist mainly of Etienne Wenger's social theory of learning, which describes identity as participation in communities of practice. To fully understand the professional identity of Children's Librarians, we used additional ideas of vocation and gender perspective. The main themes for the analysis are: the professional socialization, occupational practice and specialization, the profession in a social context, the ideology and ideals of the profession.Our main conclusions are as follows: the identity of Children's Librarians is mainly determined by the focus on literature rather than information, and can be understood as participation and non-participation. The Children's Librarians show a deep commitment to a mission mediating literature. Their role can be understood as a nexus of a professional and a personal identity. An example of this is that the main competence in mediating literature is enriched by a private passion fuelled by the librarians reading in their spare time. Their identity is also determined by experiences in former occupations and future career plans. The identity and practice is formed continually as the community of practice negotiates meaning.