Enticing teenagers into the library

Abstract

Purpose: Children and teenagers are the future adult users of libraries, and how they are treated in our libraries, particularly school and public libraries, can cement lifelong memories and habits in these young people. This paper aims to address this issue.Design/methodology/approach: The following paper is a review of the literature on young people's, particularly teenagers' use (or lack thereof) of libraries, the importance of library use and methods to encourage library use in young people.Findings: Despite the findings from some of the literature that teenagers are less likely to visit libraries, there were many services and programmes in libraries that aim to reverse this trend.Research limitations/implications: Some of the literature is peer-reviewed, but selected pieces were written by librarians in the field about their interactions with young people in their libraries. Although the latter cannot be generalised to all young people, they are important in providing examples of what occurs in some cases and what might be replicated in other settings.Originality/value: Encouraging young people to visit and enjoy libraries can be a rewarding experience and is important in creating the next generation of library users.Keywords: Adolescents, Youth, Public libraries, School librariesPaper type: General review