McCahill, D., Birdi, B. orcid.org/0000-0002-0002-7989 and Jones, R.B. (2020) Investigating the public response to local government decisions to reduce or remove public library services. Journal of Librarianship & Information Science, 52 (1). pp. 40-53. ISSN 0961-0006
Abstract
This paper presents new findings regarding the public response to public spending cuts as part of the UK Government fiscal consolidation programme, specifically to the perceived effects of reduced library opening hours on the public library user in a city in the North of England. An inductive approach was taken to the mixed methods study, using a self-completion, cross-sectional survey distributed to adults visiting one of three libraries in the city during a 6-day period. Qualitative and quantitative data analyses indicate a shared level of dissatisfaction with the service reductions across the respondents, and a shared perception of having been adversely affected. Statistical analyses revealed a strong level of agreement that the changes had a significantly negative impact on different aspects of respondents’ lives. The research evidences the direct effects of service reductions on library users, as well as the wider social and economic implications.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2018. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Journal of Librarianship and Information Science. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. Article available under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Information School (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 22 Mar 2018 16:27 |
Last Modified: | 20 Apr 2021 13:09 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1177/0961000618768028 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE Publications |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/0961000618768028 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:128890 |