Helping or Overstepping?: Adult Services Librarians Talk About Social Services in Public Libraries

Abstract

Public libraries are increasingly seeing patrons with a variety of social services needs. Often, the adult services librarian
is the first, and sometimes only, point of contact for these patrons. It is important, therefore, to explore adult services
librarians’ perspectives on and experiences with addressing patrons’ social services needs. Two online focus groups
were held with a total of 13 adult services librarians from across the United States. Findings indicate that these librarians
are seeing patrons with myriad social services needs, and they are collaborating with community partners and, in some
cases, social workers to address them. They generally do not feel that their LIS education prepared them to adequately
provide these services. Moreover, feelings are mixed about the extent to which librarians should be expected to perform
this kind of work. Overall, they desire clearer guidelines about the librarian’s role and what the professional boundaries
are in this context.