Go back to start: gathering baseline data about gaming in libraries

摘要

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to develop some baseline data about games in libraries inrnNorth America. The term games is taken broadly in this piece to mean all types of games from cardrnand board games to video games. The focus is primarily on public libraries, but there is somerndiscussion of school and academic libraries as well.rnDesign/methodology/approach - There were two surveys done. The first was a phone survey ofrn400 public libraries, selected at random. The second survey was a Web-based convenience sample ofrnlibraries of different types. In both studies, we asked questions about the support of gaming in thernlibrary, the types of gaming programs run in the library, and the goals and outcomes of those gamingrnprograms.rnFindings - Around 78 per cent of public libraries support gaming of some type. About 40 per centrnrun formal gaming programs, and about 20 per cent circulate games. The larger the library, the morernlikely they are to support gaming. The primary goals of gaming in libraries are to attract thernunderserved, attract current library patrons, and to create a space for social interactions betweenrnmembers of the community.rnResearch limitations/implications - The first study is a random sample and therefore is arnstatistically significant representation of the population. The second study, being a Web-basedrnconvenience sample, is not statistically representative of a population.rnOriginality/value - This type of baseline data is not available. Understanding how libraries arernsupporting games is valuable to researchers in asking appropriate questions. In addition, it helpsrnlibraries considering adding games to their services to learn how other libraries are doing it.