How Public Libraries Help Immigrants Adjust to Life in a New Country: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Public library programs and services offer opportunities to help immigrants navigate daily life in unfamiliar surroundings and a new language. For example, language classes address the social determinants of health as they encourage social participation and community ties and help develop friendships. The purpose of this research was to conduct a narrative literature review to understand how immigrants use public libraries and how public library services influence the social determinants of health for immigrant populations. Keyword searches were conducted on five databases to identify research papers that met the inclusion criteria: empirical studies published in English between 2000 and 2020 related to immigrants’ use of public libraries. Thirty-one articles were included in the analysis. Thematic coding identified cross-cutting themes within the sample using the framework of the social-ecological model. Immigrants commonly use public libraries for programs (e.g., language learning), collections (e.g., borrowing books), and services (e.g., asking librarians questions). Immigrant patrons often reported satisfaction with library programs, services, and collections in the language of the host country. A frequent criticism was the relevance and accessibility of collections in their heritage language. In addition, library staff demographics often did not reflect those of immigrant patrons. Health-enhancing benefits associated with library use included increased confidence and self-esteem, cultural integration and preservation, trust and relationships (e.g., making friends), community awareness and engagement, and political integration. Future research and practice areas include collaboration between public health and library professionals to develop library programming that maximizes health and well-being among immigrants.

What Are Public Libraries For? Culture As a Determinant of Conceptualizations of Public Library Services for Forced Migrants

“…In the extant work that makes direct reference to the information behaviors of newcomers and public libraries, attention is paid primarily to the community role of such services (e.g., Aabø & Audunson, 2012; Audunson et al ., 2011; Caidi & Allard, 2005; Grossman et al ., 2021; Johnston, 2016, 2018; Khoir et al ., 2017; Martzoukou & Burnett, 2018; Shepherd et al ., 2018; Vårheim, 2011, 2014), encompassing societal and epistemic aspects (Appleton et al ., 2018). More specifically, resource provision is a focus (e.g., Aabø & Audunson, 2012; Burke, 2008; Johnston, 2016, 2018; Khoir et al ., 2017; Shepherd et al ., 2018).…”

“…For example, newcomers may access public library resources to connect with the culture of their host country (e.g. Audunson et al ., 2011; Caidi and Allard, 2005; Grossman et al ., 2021; Johnston, 2016 and 2018), to learn the local language (e.g., Johnston, 2016, p. 13; Vårheim, 2014), or to study for school (Burke, 2008). Similarly, the function of public libraries as meeting places for professional, educational, and leisure activities (e.g., Aabø et al ., 2010; Khoir et al ., 2017, p. 37; Vakkari et al ., 2016) is connected to increased levels of trust (Audunson et al ., 2011 p. 224–226), the development of social capital in communities (Vårheim, 2011 p. 18), and a means of promoting social inclusion for newcomer groups.…”

The multilingual children’s library as physical and metaphorical ‘space’ within the community: Practical and emotional considerations

“…What is missing from this research is the social justice approach to 'integration', which specifies that integration does not mean assimilation, but instead helps people from migration backgrounds to holistically operate within all linguistic and cultural spheres that are part of their identity. Grossman et al (2022) highlight that, while library users from migration backgrounds value access to English language books and lessons, they critique the lack of access to resources in their own language. As such, a focus on multilingualism in library research is vital to continue meaningful work on how libraries serve ever-more-diverse communities, and thus an important contribution this paper makes to the understanding of libraries and their users.…”

“…The library also drew in new audiences, as Rafaela points out: 'I think the first time I went to the library was because of the multilingual library to be fair'. As Grossman et al (2022) highlighted, access to books in home languages is identified as a need among library users from migration backgrounds, and the provision of such books can bring both new users into the library, and encourage families to make a special journey to access them.…”

Provision of health-related information for immigrant patrons in public libraries in a large US city

“…There are over 9,000 US public library systems in the USA (American Library Association, 2019), many of which provide diverse programs and materials to ease the transition. Because they serve all people (Va ˚rheim, 2011(Va ˚rheim, , 2014a(Va ˚rheim, , 2014bGrossman et al, 2021), public libraries help to develop social networks and social trust for those in a new environment. This role has been especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic, given the disproportionate burden of the virus on immigrant populations due to socioeconomic factors and access to health care (Clark et al, 2020), and their need to access reliable and accurate health-related information (e.g.…”