The aim of this paper is to investigate who the visitors are at a children's department at amain library in a larger municipality, and for what purpose they use it. We discuss: Is therea difference between various user groups, and if so, how do they differ'? Which library rolesdoes the children's department have? Does the children's department serve as a local libraryfor those who live in the immediate surroundings or as a main library for the whole municipality?The paper is based on a user survey performed in the spring of 1996 at the City Library ofGothenburg. 417 visitors and five staff members were interviewed.The children's department is used by various groups of people, from young children to seniorcitizens. The library roles are, among other things, an independent learning center and formaleducation support center. The children's department functions both as a local library anda main library.

This paper deals with how people use public libraries. An attempt is made to distinguishbetween different user groups on the basis of how they use the library. The roles of thelibrary in relation to its users are also discussed.The paper is based on a user study with the cooperation of 195 users. The user studywas carried out at the Public Library of Alingsås 1994. As material for comparisonsimilar studies from Sweden, but even from Denmark, have been used. The user groupswere divided into different categories according to Geir Vestheim's study "Folkebiblioteki forvandling", 1992 [Public libraries in change].The paper brings forward that using the library and its stock on location is common inseveral of the user groups. This appears as a hidden utilization of the library in traditionalstatistical datas. Students on different levels are a growing group in the utilizationof the public libraries.

The purpose of this study is to explore the social role of librarians at public libraries. Public libraries promote themselves as open democratic arenas where everyone is welcome. This has the effect that all kinds of people visit public libraries, and might result in disconcerting situations involving for example persons suffering from mental illness or intoxicated people. The library staff might then be expected to handle threats or violence, situations that they have not been prepared or trained for. Even less turbulent social situations can be hard to juggle, such as regular library users who are unwilling to end a conversation or people who want to get too personal. This study takes an explorative approach on the social role in public librarianship, investigating the problematic as well as the pleasant social situations in public libraries. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted to collect statements from five librarians at various libraries. As a theoretical framework. Erving Goffman's theories about social interaction has been used to analyse the social role from a individual perspective. The concept ”community of practice" by Etienne Wenger has has been used to study the subject in a collective perspective. The results show that all the interviewed librarians saw themselves as having a social role but they approached it in different ways. Another conclusion is that the librarians in the study have formed a community of practice in the way they cooperate and the way they support and educate each other in connection to the social interactions with the library users.

Denna kvalitativa intervjustudie undersöker åtta biblioteksanställdas upplevelser av sexuella trakasserier från biblioteksbesökare på biblioteket som arbetsplats för att beskriva vilken typ av sexuella trakasserier de erfarit samt hantering och följder av dessa i termer av strategier och emotioner. Sammanfattningsvis har studiens deltagare upplevt sexuella trakasserier i form av verbal och fysisk karaktär, liksom stirrande, gester och stalkning. För att undvika sexuella trakasserier från biblioteksbesökare och hantera dem då de uppstår har individuella, kollegiala och i viss mån institutionella strategier utvecklats. Studien visar också att känslor av skam och skuld är förekommande som följd av sexuella trakasserier. Som teoretisk ansats har de biblioteksanställdas berättelser om sexuella trakasserier från biblioteksbesökare analyserats utifrån begrepp som skuld, skam, offer, känsloarbete, performativitet, den manliga blicken, respektabilitet, stereotyper och praktisk klokhet. En problematisering av begreppet sexuella trakasserier görs. Studien drar slutsatsen att biblioteket i det att det är en plats till vilken alla människor har tillträde, liksom dess funktion som social och informationsförmedlande institution skapar gynnsamma förutsättningar för att sexuella trakasserier från besökare initieras. Serviceaspekten av biblioteksanställdas yrkesroll innefattar ett trevligt bemötande av alla besökare, vilket ställer den anställda inför såväl dilemman som ansvarskänsla då sexuella trakasserier upplevs. De biblioteksanställda utvecklar främst individuella, men också kollegiala strategier samtidigt som arbetsköparens ansvar ofta brister.