Libraries and values Building trust in Swedish public libraries through transparency

Abstract

Democratic institutions around the world have been questioned recently, including libraries. Problems include polarization and populism. The purpose of this thesis is to increase the trust of libraries against this backdrop. This is done using critical algorithm theory on transparency, to improve the possibilities, for the public, of knowing how Swedish small to medium sized public libraries collections of books are created (via the libraries’ process of purchasing). 13 interviews and six documents are used as empirical data. I conclude that: 1) The process of purchasing used at these libraries can be made transparent, to increase the trust in libraries, by showing empirically their neutrality based in the diverse group of citizens they serve. 2) A part of this is making the valuation of quality transparent, that is, how librarians balance the (literary, scientific etc.) quality of books against other criteria in the purchasing process, especially the criteria of what books library visitors demand. 3) The debate between user-centric and collection-centric collections, that is the degree of power between users and librarians in the purchasing process, needs to account for another dimension, feedback from users – made possible by an increased transparency. By doing this, I contribute to critical algorithm theory through an empirical study recommending transparency. Second, to valuation studies, through investigating valuations at libraries. Third, to library studies, by adding a dimension to the debate about user-centric and collection-centric collections.