Programverksamhet
ett uttryck för folkbibliotekets identitet
This thesis is a contribution to the discussion on the public library?s institutional identity in late modernity. The aim is to shed light on the public library?s identity as expressed through its public events. The thesis seeks to answer the following questions: What kind of public events are offered at public libraries? What themes distinguish the content of these events? What characterizes the institutional identity expressed through these events? In addition to the concept of institutional identity, a model of four library spaces, developed by Skot-Hansen, Hvenegaard Rasmussen, and Jochumsen, constitutes the theoretical framework of this thesis. Qualitative content analysis is applied to entries gathered from the joint events calendar of the public libraries in Stockholm. The entries pertain to events taking place during the first four months of 2013. Common events at the libraries studied include: homework help; instruction in e-book, smartphone, and internet use; legal advice; book clubs; language cafés; story times; sing-alongs; interactive children?s plays; author visits; lectures; musical and theatrical performances; film screenings; exhibitions; arts and crafts; and creative writing workshops. The analysis results in five themes that encapsulate the content of the public events: help center, café, playground, stage, and workshop. The themes are metaphors for the public library?s implied relation to the events in question. The public library?s institutional identity can be characterized as a composite of these themes. Furthermore, it is concluded that the public library is an institution with a relatively stable identity grounded in the ordinary rather than the spectacular.