The influences of communitarian philosophy in public policy: mapping the discourse of Scottish public library strategy

Paton, Colin; McMenemy, David

Abstract

Purpose (limit 100 words) This research investigates the presence of communitarian philosophy within contemporary Scottish public library strategy, exploring links between philosophy, politics, and practice. Design/methodology/approach (limit 100 words) The paper follows a qualitative research approach, combining content analysis and discourse analysis methodologies for the analysis of a corpus of Scottish public library trust documentation according to a thematic framework of communitarian values. Findings (limit 100 words) The analysis revealed strong links between trust strategy and communitarian values, but also highlighted contradictions within this form of communitarianism which belied a deeper neoliberal philosophical foundation. The research therefore identified a communitarian strategic service shift which introduced benefits of social inclusion, community autonomy, and common good, but also brought concerns of an inherently weakened communal foundation and the survival of a neoliberal status quo. Research limitations/implications (limit 100 words) The analysis is focused on strategy in Scotland only, thus can only claim to be representative of that country. However, the growth in communitarian strategies in the public sector is informed from the analysis undertaken. Practical implications (limit 100 words) The paper provides a novel analysis of public library strategy thus contributes to our understanding of public library practice in the modern era. Originality/value (limit 100 words) This is the first analysis to consider public library strategy from a communitarian point of view. As such it provides novel insights into a growing area of public service development. Social implications (limit 100 words) The impacts of communitarian philosophy in the public sphere are under-researched, how these changes impact on the mission of libraries needs to be better understood.

Citation

Paton, C., & McMenemy, D. (2023). The influences of communitarian philosophy in public policy: mapping the discourse of Scottish public library strategy. Journal of Documentation, https://doi.org/10.1108/jd-02-2023-0020

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 5, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Jun 9, 2023
• Publication Date: Jun 9, 2023
• Deposit Date: Jul 5, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 5, 2023
• Journal: Journal of Documentation
• Print ISSN: 0022-0418
• Publisher: Emerald
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/jd-02-2023-0020
• Keywords: strategy, Public Libraries, public policy, political philosophy, Scotland, communitarianism, charitable trusts