What Roles do Auckland Libraries Play in the Lives of Chinese Immigrants?

Abstract

The aim of this research is to investigate what roles Auckland libraries have played in the lives of Chinese immigrants in New Zealand from the viewpoint of nine Chinese library users who are members of Auckland libraries. The study uses a qualitative methodology by asking open-ended questions of participants through face-to-face interviews. Herlitz and Nygren-Junkin’s three-phase model of immigrant adaptation is used as the theoretical framework for this research. The findings of this research project reveal that Chinese, as one of the largest immigrant user groups, have been active users of Auckland libraries and that Auckland libraries provide a variety of services to Chinese immigrants to meet their diverse needs. It is finds that participants’ information needs and reasons to use Auckland libraries vary based on the immigrant adaptation phase they belong to. Chinese immigrants’ evaluation of Auckland library services, and suggestions for future research are given at the end of the study. The results of this research will allow Auckland libraries to gain more knowledge about Chinese immigrants, enabling other public libraries in New Zealand to learn of the achievements Auckland libraries have made with immigrant services and potentially improve their own service to immigrant users.