The characteristics and roles of 'library as place' in Japan

Libraries as “Places of Public”, where one can experience architectural expression and the legacy of the academic community, are not a new concept in Japan. Public libraries in Japan, have a long history and over the years they have uniquely evolved from “student study room style” (1950s) to “lending library style” (1960s and 1970s) to “network and multimedia style” (1980s to early 1990s), and then to “spatial and user-centered style” (late 1990s to 2000s). This paper would like to examine the characteristics and roles of ‘library as place’ in Japan. We would also like to use these factors to classify Japanese public libraries. By classifying them into types of libraries, we can elucidate the trends and features of the characteristics and roles of the places of public libraries in Japan. Our study used mixed methods of qualitative content analysis and cluster analysis. We targeted 487 Japanese public libraries that had been inaugurated or renovated since 2010. Among these we were able to collect documents from 128 libraries. Documents collected for the analysis included (1) strategic plans, (2) service plans, and (3) construction plans. Descriptions of the place and spaces were assigned codes using the qualitative analysis software MAXQDA. We then developed a typology of public libraries based on cluster analysis. We examined each cluster and classified them. As a result of the qualitative content analysis, 5,581 codes were derived and divided into 13 code groups. Most libraries had two major code groups, “contribution to community building” and “meeting user needs through space development”. In other words, both code groups typically represent the characteristics and roles of Japanese public libraries today. In addition, cluster analysis was conducted on the code groups, and the libraries were classified into six library types: (1) modern basic, (2) progressive, (3) community-development, (4) information-centered, (5) civic and social-centered, and (6) traditional service-oriented. Future research of each type could further clarify the actual role of library spaces for citizens and local communities.