What do people do in a library?

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What do people do in a library? Comparing envisioned and actual affordances for usage of visitors to a public library Amber Barton Key terms: public library, public space, social activity space, affordances, usage patterns Abstract: The following research report sets out to investigate human-environment relations through the lens of user behaviours within public libraries. A brief background of libraries is presented which paints a picture of the historic and on-going importance they have within communities as one of the only truly public buildings. This paper aligns itself with the view that public libraries offer a unique institutional social activity space appropriate for the study of affordances. The literature review and theoretical framework situate the study within the larger field of environmental psychology, in particular ethnographic studies of user preference and behaviour within libraries. The idea of social activity space (or Behaviour Settings Theory) and affordances form the lens for the qualitative and quantitative research methodology to follow. The methodology lends from work conducted in two central Canadian libraries by Leckie and Hopkins (2002). The final sections will discuss the behaviour patterns and themes which arise from a triangulation of document analysis, mapping studies, observation studies, interviews, and fieldwork journal entries. The chosen case study of Byron Bay Library and the surrounding community in the far north coast of New South Wales is contextualised within the larger framework of state and nation-wide design guidelines to reveal the potential implications outside of a bespoke study. This study critically reflects upon the relative success of envision affordances for usage within public libraries, as found in New South Wales and Australian guidelines, in finding actuation within the usage patterns of visitors to a public library. Assessment: Research Report Assessment Task: 3 Due: Monday 27th August, 2018 Weighting: 60% Words: 3000

Subject: Human Environments Relations Subject Code: ABPL90322 Semester: June 2018 Co-ordinator: Ben Cleveland

Author: Amber Barton Student number: 699287 Course: Master of Architecture University: The University of Melbourne


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