The Public Library in an Aging Society

Abstract

This chapter describes the present conditions of our aging society, with a particular focus on Japan as a typical example of such a society. In Japan, one in every four individuals is over 65 years of age, and one in eight is over 75 years of age. Further, based on this demographic change to an older population, this chapter discusses a new library service designed to enhance the lives of elderly citizens. The authors explore this new service from the viewpoint of lifelong learning, utilizing the results of recent government surveys and some case studies, such as those done at the Izumo City Hikawa Library and the Akita Prefectural Library in Japan. Although the elderly have been placed within the category of “disabled library patrons,” in recent years, it has become more common to consider the elderly, as a whole, as an individual service category. We should, in the near future, pay more attention to supporting elderly citizens at public libraries to engage them in the development and maintenance of their own communities.