Baseline Study of Libraries for Everyone

Libraries for Everyone is the most comprehensive project concerning municipal libraries in Turkey. The project aims to improve the quality of life among the Turkish society with a particular emphasis on the disadvantaged segments by turning municipal libraries into attraction centers where citizens get free access to hardware, software and training facilities that will enable them to benefit at the highest level from the possibilities of information and communication technologies. This study gives information about the Libraries for Everyone Project in general, examines the works carried out in our country for the municipal libraries and shares the findings of research carried out in the libraries under the project. The study was based on data obtained from 4317 municipal library users and was collected through face to face surveys applied in August and September 2016. Findings showed that, municipal library users are generally composed of young people and students that form a certain group of users who benefit from the library on a regular basis. Findings also revealed that among all age groups, younger users visit the libraries more often than the older ones. In addition, it is understood that users would be interested in training activities to be given in the municipal libraries in various topics (e.g., use of information and communication technologies, egovernment applications). This research, which forms the baseline study of this project and other works to be carried out in the future, is expected to enable us to become more familiar with the geography of municipal libraries fed from different data sources.