This paper reports on the qualitative findings of a three-year study of public libraries and social capital conducted in Ontario, Canada. The study sought to establish whether library use was related to levels of social capital. This paper focuses on the rural phase of the study. The researchers visited five rural libraries, all in the southwestern region of the province. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews with library staff members and regular library users. The data suggest that while rural libraries have high potential to create social capital, the overlap of social networks in rural communities renders the library’s influence redundant. Moreover, many of the mechanisms that help libraries increase a sense of social cohesion and inclusion among users can also result in exclusion, even if unintentionally.

This paper reports on a study that investigated the relationship between social capital and public library use in small towns in Ontario, Canada. Comparisons were also made with the findings of a similar study that was conducted in a medium-sized urban centre. Data for this study were collected through questionnaires administered to both library users and non-users and interviews with library staff and frequent library users. Both Robert Putnam's and Nan Lin's conceptualizations of social capital informed the design of this study. The study found that participants from small towns had higher levels of social capital than the urban participants. However, in contrast with urban participants, library use had no significant association with levels of social capital for small town participants. The findings suggest that small town libraries cater mainly to middle-class residents who maintain their high level of social capital through participation in a variety of community activities and organizations.

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This paper reports on a doctoral study in progress which examines the spatial organization of three public library buildings. The paper comments on the materially-embedded relations of power between the library and its users, paying special attention to socio-spatial models of control dating from the age of modern library design. Résumé : Cette communication porte sur une étude doctorale en cours qui examine l'organisation spatiale de trois bibliothèques publiques. L'auteur commente les relations de pouvoir que l'on retrouve entre la bibliothèque et ses usagers, avec une attention particulière aux modèles de contrôle socio-spatiaux issus du design des bibliothèques modernes.

Re ´sume ´: Cet article re ´examine les re ´sultats d'une e ´tude de cas mene ´e en 2007 portant sur la bibliothe `que Carnegie d'Owen Sound (Ontario), envisage ´e comme lieu dans l'espace. A `partir d'une combinaison de me ´thodes provenant de la recherche historique et des e ´tudes qualitatives de cas, et en utilisant la triade spatiale d'Henri Lefebvre comme cadre d'analyse, le chercheur compare certains aspects de l'espace de la bibliothe `que tels que l'accessibilite ´, la supervision de l'espace de la bibliothe `que, le sentiment de connexion du public avec l'exte ´rieur, et le reflet de la communaute ´. L'article avance que la bibliothe `que Carnegie d'Owen Sound repre ´sente, en tant que lieu, un nouveau mode `le possible de bibliothe `que publique digne d'e ´tude : le ba ˆtiment historique de la bibliothe `que au sein de la communaute ´, un genre de bibliothe `que qui n'est pas simplement un vestige du passe ´aujourd'hui de ´suet, mais au contraire un lieu ouvert et vibrant de vie au coeur de la communaute´.Mots-cle ´s : bibliothe `ques Carnegie, bibliothe `que comme lieu, bibliothe `ques et communaute ´s, ba ˆtiments de bibliothe `que, espace social, e ´tude de cas Abstract: The article reviews findings of a case study conducted in 2007 that examined the Owen Sound (Ontario) Carnegie Library as a place. Drawing from a combination of qualitative case study and historical research methods, and using Henri Lefebvre's spatial triad as an analytical framework, the researcher compares such past and present aspects of the library space as accessibility, supervision of the library space, the patron's sense of connection to the outside, and community reflection. The article suggests that the Owen Sound Carnegie Library as a place represents a possible new type of public library building worthy of further study: the historical library building in the community, a type of library that is not merely an obsolete relic of the past but is instead a vibrant and flexible place within the community.