Purpose -The purpose of the paper is to develop an improved conceptual framework for researching and discussing the public library's role as a meeting-place in a multicultural and digital society. Design/methodology/approach -The development of today's Western societies from societies dominated by one cultural canon, and where the role of the public library is to give the public access to that canon, into societies where a multitude of cultural expressions and values are tolerated and appraised, is summarized. This development is linked to the digital revolution, which opens up for increased communication but might increase a development where people live in segregated cultural niches without being exposed to other values and interests. The general challenge of creating meeting-places with a potential of promoting that degree of cross-cultural communication which a community presupposes is presented. Theory and research on meeting-places and arenas for community communication are presented. Findings -The concepts of high-intensive versus low-intensive meeting-places are developed. High-intensive meeting-places are those arenas where people invest their primary engagement, whereas low-intensive meeting-places are arenas where one is exposed to the values and interests of others. The role of low-intensive meeting-places in promoting tolerance and community is discussed, and the public library's potential as a low-intensive meeting-place is analyzed. Research limitations/implications -Empirical research based on the concept of high-intensive and low intensive meeting-places should be undertaken. Practical implications -The concept of low-intensive meeting-places has practical consequences for public librarianship. Some of these are specified in the paper. Originality/value -The paper develops a new concept that might prove fruitful for research as well as for practical librarianship.

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How are libraries used as meeting places, and by whom? Through survey data, six categories of places are identified: the library as a -square,‖ as a place for meeting diverse people, as a public sphere, as a place for joint activities with friends and colleagues, a metameeting place, and as a place for virtual meetings. Representative samples of the population in three townships in Oslo, each with a markedly different demographic profile, are surveyed.

The potential role of the public library in the lives of immigrant women is elicited by in depth interviews with nine female immigrants to Norway from Iran, Afghanistan and Kurdistan. Theoretically the research utilizes social capital theory, the concepts of communities of practice and legitimate peripheral participation as well as the concepts of high intensive versus low intensive meeting places. The results indicate that the library that the library plays different roles in the different stages in the respondents' careers as immigrants. It opens up for legitimate peripheral participation where the immigrants move from observing at a distance to more active participation. The library functions as a high intensive as well as a low intensive meeting place and that it seems to contribute in building social capital in a variety of ways. This is a piece of research aiming at eliciting the role of the public library in the lives of immigrant women. The research, which is a part of the PLACE project, 1 is based upon qualitative interviews with nine female immigrants to Norway from Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. The women were interviewed in their mother tongues, i.e. Farsi, Dari and

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the shaping of public libraries as an infrastructure for a sustainable public sphere through a comprehensive literature review. Design/methodology/approach In order to capture the whole picture of this research field, we utilize comprehensive review methodology. The major research questions are: first, to what extent have research topics regarding libraries as public sphere institutions expanded and diversified? Which theoretical perspectives inform research? Second, which challenges and topics does the research focus upon, such as: social inclusion and equal access to information; digital inequalities; censorship and freedom of expression; and access to places and spaces with a democratic potential and the role of libraries in that respect? Third, what influence has social media exerted on libraries in the context of the expanding digital world? Findings The authors identified mainly four themes regarding the public library and public sphere, such as: the importance of public libraries by using Habermas’s theory; the function of meeting places within the public library and setting those places in the center of the library in order to enhance and encourage democracy; the relationship between social inclusion and public libraries and its functions in current society such as diminishing the digital divide; and the emerging electronic resources and arena of SNS in public libraries and utilizing them to reach citizens. Originality/value Capturing the recent history of this research field through comprehensive review is valuable.