Analyzing the Role of Public Libraries Services in the Development of the Local Economy: Case Study of Kermanshah Province

Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the role of public libraries in the development of the local economy from the perspective of librarians working in public libraries of Kermanshah province in the current and desirable situation of public libraries. This study extracts the activities that the public library can do in the development of the local economy in the form of information and information services, educational and research, consulting and reference, and analyzes the level of service provision in both available and desirable modes. Method: The use of a researcher-made questionnaire has been investigated. The construct and content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by experts, and its reliability was calculated through Cronbach's alpha at 0.955 and 0.935 at optimum conditions. This is a survey study. The statistical population of the study was 194 librarians of Kermanshah Public Libraries. The Cochran formula was used to determine the sample size, which yielded a sample size of 126 individuals. The SPSS software was used to measure the reliability of the questionnaire, implementing descriptive statistics. Findings: Findings showed that in the current situation, ancillary services with a mean of 3.05%, information and information services with a mean of 2.59%, educational and research services with a mean of 2.32, at a relatively desirable level, and consulting and reference services in the situation with a mean of 0.04 are at an undesirable level. On the other hand, ancillary services with an average of 2.86%, educational and research services with a mean of 2.54%, information and information services with a mean of 2.34, and consulting and reference services with a mean of 2.26 are at a desirable level, respectively. It can be concluded that the level of public library services (information, information, education, research, and auxiliary services) is at a relatively desirable level and that consulting and reference services are at a poor level. On the other hand, in terms of the desirable level of service provision (information services, educational and research, information consulting and reference, and ancillary services) are at a desirable and relatively desirable level. The ranking of services showed that in the current conditions, the ancillary services, information services, educational and research, consulting, and reference services are ranked first to fourth, respectively. The ancillary services, education and research, information and information, and consulting and reference are ranked in the favorable conditions first to fourth, respectively. Therefore, in comparison to each of the services in the current and favorable conditions, in all cases, the services were different. Originality/value: The present study is one of the few national investigations that analyzes the role of public libraries in the development of the local economy and examines the views of librarians and decision-makers of these services who deal with the problems and issues in providing them in libraries. With the results of this study, the managers of Iranian public libraries can make the necessary plans to play one of the important roles of public libraries in Iran, which is the development of local and indigenous economy