AbstractsSociology

This article explores the potentials of expanding opening hours through self-service and obstacles that comes with this kind of service. The significant part of public libraries in Denmark have expanded their opening hours by implementing a self-service and self-opening options, whereby the users can visit the unmanned libraries outside opening hours with their identification or library cards. This article examines an anomaly of this tendency: Hvidovre Library that is reluctant to implement this service. If extended unmanned opening hours is the future for libraries, what makes Hvidovre library hesitate to implement this kind of service? Participant observation, one focus group interview, vox-pop interviews and regular qualitative interviews are used, as well as a theoretical framework which draws on the concept glocalisation as well as perspectives of material culture. We argue that while unmanned self-service hours is cost-saving and efficient innovation, it also changes the very function and atmosphere of a library. Furthermore the implementation of self-service opening hours at Hvidovre Library will have an effect on the social factor of the library. We conclude that, because of the offices of the Municipality of Hvidovre are placed within the library building, it is not possible to implement self- service opening hours due to the re-design being too expensive. In addition we conclude that the implementation of self-service opening hours will have the effect of removing the social factor from the library and this will primarily estrange the elderly people from the library, as they are the ones primarily using the library for a social purpose.