Professional paper

Academic Librarian Between Professional Ethics and Socio-Educational Trends (From the Perspective of Critical Librarianship)

Sanja Kovačević orcid.org/0009-0004-7307-8885 ; Faculty Of Humanities and Social Sciences Zagreb

Abstract

The availability of scientific information is a task and an important aspect of the work of academic librarians. Given the volume and speed of changes brought about by technological development, education has become indispensable in their daily work. Additionally, the availability of information is an important professional and ethical issue for the library community, as well as for society as a whole. The library community, especially in the context of academic libraries, has long been seeking ways to ensure this availability. In this effort, librarians encounter a number of obstacles, which are mostly conditioned by systemic (in terms of the social system) and structural (in terms of library organization) factors. These issues need to be recognized in order to find constructive strategies that will bring us closer to more accessible knowledge. In order to raise awareness of these problems, this topic is being approached through this paper from the perspective of critical librarianship. The core of the problem regarding the availability of scientific information is defined through the following opposition: publicly accessible science vs. the knowledge industry. The paper will address the fundamental ethical principles on which the library community can rely when facing the structural problems of today's higher education librarianship in this domain, as well as the need and possibilities for greater engagement in promoting the democratization of knowledge.

Keywords

academic libraries; commodification of knowledge; critical librarianship; ethics of science; open science

Hrčak ID:

326678

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/326678

Publication date:

20.12.2024.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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