Canada’s aging population is expected to have an impact on all public institutions; for public libraries, the emergence of a large, multi-generational user group of older adults challenges the current paradigm of services to seniors. This thesis examines a subset of this user group: baby boomer library patrons who are in a caring relationship with elders. It investigates how these patrons interact with the public library both for themselves, and as carers, in order to reveal library-related issues particular to this growing segment of the population. The study takes place within a conceptual framework derived from the ethic of care, and from emerging theories of library-as-place rooted in the fields of human geography and sociology. Using a qualitative instrumental case study method, long form interviews were conducted with respondents recruited through theoretical sampling extended by snowball sampling. While not generalizable, findings suggest that while these baby boomer respondents value their libraries deeply, there is potential to create services and practices more attuned to the needs of older adults who are in relationships with elders.

Canada’s aging population is expected to have an impact on all public institutions; for public libraries, the emergence of a large, multi-generational user group of older adults challenges the current paradigm of services to seniors. This thesis examines a subset of this user group: baby boomer library patrons who are in a caring relationship with elders. It investigates how these patrons interact with the public library both for themselves, and as carers, in order to reveal library-related issues particular to this growing segment of the population. The study takes place within a conceptual framework derived from the ethic of care, and from emerging theories of library-as-place rooted in the fields of human geography and sociology. Using a qualitative instrumental case study method, long form interviews were conducted with respondents recruited through theoretical sampling extended by snowball sampling. While not generalizable, findings suggest that while these baby boomer respondents value their libraries deeply, there is potential to create services and practices more attuned to the needs of older adults who are in relationships with elders.

Canada’s aging population is expected to have an impact on all public institutions; for public libraries, the emergence of a large, multi-generational user group of older adults challenges the current paradigm of services to seniors. This thesis examines a subset of this user group: baby boomer library patrons who are in a caring relationship with elders. It investigates how these patrons interact with the public library both for themselves, and as carers, in order to reveal library-related issues particular to this growing segment of the population. The study takes place within a conceptual framework derived from the ethic of care, and from emerging theories of library-as-place rooted in the fields of human geography and sociology. Using a qualitative instrumental case study method, long form interviews were conducted with respondents recruited through theoretical sampling extended by snowball sampling. While not generalizable, findings suggest that while these baby boomer respondents value their libraries deeply, there is potential to create services and practices more attuned to the needs of older adults who are in relationships with elders.

Canada’s aging population is expected to have an impact on all public institutions; for public libraries, the emergence of a large, multi-generational user group of older adults challenges the current paradigm of services to seniors. This thesis examines a subset of this user group: baby boomer library patrons who are in a caring relationship with elders. It investigates how these patrons interact with the public library both for themselves, and as carers, in order to reveal library-related issues particular to this growing segment of the population. The study takes place within a conceptual framework derived from the ethic of care, and from emerging theories of library-as-place rooted in the fields of human geography and sociology. Using a qualitative instrumental case study method, long form interviews were conducted with respondents recruited through theoretical sampling extended by snowball sampling. While not generalizable, findings suggest that while these baby boomer respondents value their libraries deeply, there is potential to create services and practices more attuned to the needs of older adults who are in relationships with elders.

I samband med covid-19-pandemins utbrott begränsade lärosätesbiblioteken tillgången till det fysiska biblioteksrummet. Samtidigt gjordes bibliotekets resurser tillgängliga digitalt i allt större utsträckning. Detta har lett till en utmaning för biblioteken i att expandera bilden av biblioteket till något mer än en samling resurser. Syftet med denna studie är därför att undersöka studenters användning och upplevelser av lärosätesbibliotek. Ett särskilt fokus ligger på att undersöka deras upplevelser av platskänsla, och biblioteket som en social mötesplats, samt om detta kan ha påverkats av covid-19-pandemin. I denna studie användes kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod. Resultatet har därefter analyserats genom ett teoretiskt ramverk bestående av dels Ray Oldenburgs begrepp third place, dels en samlad förståelse av begreppet sense of place, men med fokus på Edward Relphs definition av begreppet. I studien genomfördes fyra intervjuer med lärarstudenter från ett svenskt lärosäte. Studiens resultat indikerar att det kan finnas en koppling mellan studenters biblioteksanvändning och deras upplevelse av platskänsla i biblioteket, samt att covid-19-pandemin kan ha varit en bidragande faktor i detta. / In response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, academic libraries limited access to the physical library space. At the same time, the library's resources became increasingly available digitally. This has posed a challenge for libraries in expanding the image of the library beyond a collection of resources. The purpose of this study is therefore thus: to investigate students' usage and experiences of acamdemic libraries, and to examine their experiences of sense of place and the library as a social meeting place, and whether this may have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were used in this study. The results were then analyzed through a theoretical framework consisting of Ray Oldenburg's concept of third place, as well as a collective understanding of the concept of sense of place, with a focus on Edward Relph's definition of the concept. The study conducted four interviews with teacher education students from a Swedish university. The results of the study indicate that there may be a connection between students' library usage and their experience of sense of place in the library, and that the COVID-19 pandemic may have been a contributing factor in this regard.

Accessibility for people with ADHD is rarely covered by the research of Library and Information Science. University libraries, whose main task is to guide and provide services for students and researchers, have the means to support students with ADHD in several ways. Aside from educational support, these libraries offer a physical environment for studying. However, the existence of accessibility adaptation does not necessarily guarantee satisfaction among the group. The purpose of this paper was to examine the experiences of students with ADHD of the physical environment of their university libraries, of their sense of place. Additionally, this paper investigates how libraries can improve the design of their physical environment to meet the needs of these students. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed through thematic analysis. The findings resulted in two main themes: varying impact of social interaction and strategies and adaptation to the environment. Results showed that the library in some ways is well adjusted to their needs, but the students have to adjust to the environment in several ways because of some constraints. Additionally, the social aspects of the environment have a very big influence on the experience of the library. The prescence of other students can cause both stress and inspiration among the respondents, whose reactions would vary. Finally, a solution for a library design that would meet the needs of students with ADHD is universal design.

The library has existed as a repository for knowledge for centuries. However, in spite of the information revolution and its watershed component, the internet, this institution has found itself fundamentally unchanged. Great strides have been taken to adapt the library to this changing world, but these incremental changes are timid and reactionary. Through the internet the floodgates have opened; individuals are creating and sharing information both personal and academic, in the form of not-so-private journals, works of creative fiction, works of journalism, works of scholarship, and every other form of intellectual (and not so intellectual) propagation imaginable. Additionally, advances in computer display and input technology are breaking down the conceptions of what a computer is and how we interact with them. The trend is pointing to a future where computers are no longer objects, but an integrated component of our built environment, capable of responding to practically limitless simultaneous individual users. This thesis will take the lead on these growing trends and create a new type of information age institution to evolve alongside, rather than supplant, the library: Icomde. This new institution will explore the possibilities of these new technologies while embracing the spirit of the information revolution. It will create a unique place where people can experience state of the art means of information creation, interaction, and collaboration. Finally, when the technology present has been fundamentally surpassed, the Icomde will be dismantled and the pieces distributed to dozens of locations throughout the world to found new Icomdes, with the original site becoming host to the next iteration of whatever advanced technologies will follow. This thesis will seek to examine the cultural, social role of the library as it has evolved and has been propagated through the course of human events, using design and history research, so as to employ the 'spirit' of this place as completely as possible in spite of the proposed radical paradigm shift. It will also use logical argumentation to organize trends in web content generation and publication into patterns that can be interpreted and acted upon in a forward-thinking fashion rather than a reactionary one.

University libraries struggle to keep up with rapidly changing technology and the associated change in teaching strategy. Most administrators and librarians are often not trained to assess space needs and struggle to reassign library spaces for non-traditional library use. As such, they often embark on expensive and time-consuming feasibility studies, using (typically) hard-earned monies to complete the research or to pilot a new space. What academic research library administrators and staff lack is an analysis tool for discovering and planning needed renovations and improvements in aging library facilities. The purpose of this research project was to determine how students use library spaces for learning in this new high-tech, hands-on education experience (i.e. synthesis of previous research); develop a tool that can be used by library staff to self-analyze existing academic library spaces, identifying areas that could be improved for student benefit (e.g. provide a checklist of potential learning spaces that institutions should carefully consider adding to their facilities); and provide some examples/case studies of potential facility improvements. The end result is a hierarchical self-analysis tool that merges space options, Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and an example of library-user personas. It also provides some general cost guidelines, helpful construction tips, and a synthesis of exploratory questions related to strategy and space. The tool uses evidence-based design to facilitate important conversations, provide an organized checklist of various considerations, and be a quick reference for library administrators and facility managers as they navigate the world of twenty-first century pedagogy and student learning.