More Visits to the Library

Another reason libraries are more important than ever:

“These are some of the findings of the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ report on the FY2009 Public Library Survey (PLS), a census of American public libraries.

The Institute’s analysis of the data showed that per capita visits to libraries rose by 24 percent in the century’s first decade, while circulation increased by 26 percent. In 2009, libraries were visited a record-breaking 1.59 billion times. Libraries have defied the conventional wisdom that Google, Wikipedia, and the like would make them obsolete. That’s because they’ve recognized and responded to the evolving ways in which people use libraries.

Those who prematurely announced the demise of libraries at the hands of the Internet failed to anticipate the symbiotic relationship that would develop between the two institutions. As revealed byInterconnections: The IMLS National Study on the Use of Libraries, Museums, and the Internet, Internet users are much more likely to visit public libraries than non-Internet users.”

The article goes on to talk about the important services libraries provide to people who are unemployed. Very much hoping that more studies like this one come out and throw support to public libraries.

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