FSD2147 Finnish Local Government 2004: Libraries 2002
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Mattila, Juha (University of Vaasa. Department of Public Management)
Abstract
The survey focused on public libraries in Finnish municipalities, concentrating on their management, services and development. Other similar surveys were carried out in 1996 and 1999.
First, the respondents were asked a number of questions relating to staff numbers, library stock, and satisfaction with different library services. One theme pertained to who produces certain services like cataloguing, maintenance, IT systems etc. for the library, and satisfaction with these services. Some questions covered opinions on outsourcing. The respondents were also asked what kind of changes had happened in the library since 1999. They evaluated the state of the library and its services at the time of the survey. Decision-making was studied with questions pertaining to the role of the municipal committee responsible for library matters, and how active or knowledgeable etc. the committee members were. Opinions were probed on the impact of certain bodies (e.g. neighbouring municipalities, trade unions, civil servants, the EU, library users) on library services.
The respondents were asked how important various duties and responsibilities were in their position as the person in charge, how much time they allocate to certain tasks, and who or which body has the power to make decisions on staff recruitment, acquisition, opening hours, allocation of funds etc. They were also asked whether certain areas for development (e.g. increasing the variety of services, extending the opening hours, producing more individual services, getting more funding) would be important for the library in the coming years. Use of client surveys was charted.
Background variables included library type, and the respondent's gender, year of birth, education, work experience in libraries, responsibility areas at work, and number of inhabitants in the municipality.
Keywords
information/library resources; library facilities; library services; local government services; management; outsourcing; public libraries; public services
Topic Classification
administrative sciences; information studies; local government studies (FSD Topics Classification)
government, political systems and organisations (CESSDA Topics Classification)
Series Name
Restrictions
Variables connected to the questions q4a, q5a, q12_10, q17_5, q22_32 - q22_35 and q24 of the questionnaire are missing from the data.
Access to the data granted for scientific and teaching purposes. FSD's access application procedure.
Data Collector
Mattila, Juha (University of Vaasa. Department of Public Management)
Data Producer
Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities
Collection Date
2002
Nation
Finland
Geographical Coverage
Finland
Analysis Unit
Geographic unit (Municipality)
Universe
Finnish municipalities (excluding the Åland Islands)
Sampling Procedure
Two-stage stratified sampling in selecting project municipalities. Total study of library managers/chief librarians of libraries located in the selected municipalities.
The project municipalities were selected separately from those with less than 10000 inhabitants (28 municipalities) and from those with more than 10000 inhabitants (19 municipalities). The selection aimed to be representative within both groups in relation to all municipalities with the same population size. Large municipalities were over-represented because 70 % of the Finnish population lives in large municipalities. Representativeness criteria included regional location, age and education of the population, industry structure, municipal economy parameters, political situation and variables related to municipal policy. The selected municipalities form a small scale model of all Finnish municipalities. The Åland Islands municipalities were excluded because of special features resulting from Åland's autonomy.
Total study of all libraries and branch libraries which were located in the selected municipalities and had someone designated as the person in charge.
Collection Mode
Postal survey
Research Instrument
Structured questionnaire
Response Rate
91%
Time Method
Longitudinal: Trend/Repeated cross-section
Collection Size
Data: SPSS portable file. Data available also in other file formats.
Data version
1.0 (14.9.2006)
Other Material
Questionnaire: pdf file in Finnish
Related Studies
FSD2145 Finnish Local Government 2004 : Libraries 1996
FSD2146 Finnish Local Government 2004 : Libraries 1999
Citation Requirement
The source must be acknowledged in any publication based wholly or in part on the data. The bibliographic citation may be in the form required by the publication, or in the form suggested by the archive.
Bibliographical Citation
Mattila, Juha: Finnish Local Government 2004: Libraries 2002 [computer file]. FSD2147, version 1.0 (2006-09-14). Helsinki: Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities [producer]. Tampere: Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor], 2006.
Depositing Requirements
The archive must be informed of all publications where the data have been used.
Disclaimer
The depositor and the archive bear no responsibility for any results or interpretations arising from the secondary use of the data.
Related Publications
Mattila, Juha & Ikola-Norrbacka, Rinna (2004). Vaihtelevat vapaa-aikapalvelut. Tutkimus kuntien kirjasto-, kulttuuri-, nuoriso- ja liikuntapalveluista 1996-2002 [verkkodokumentti]. Helsinki: Kuntaliitto. http://hosted.kuntaliitto.fi/intra/julkaisut/pdf/p041216133533D.pdf [viitattu 28.9.2006].
