Designing a Model of Public Library Services to the Elderly in Tehran City

Purpose: To design a model of public library services to the elderly and to validate it among the librarians in Tehran City. Method: This is an applied research in terms of purpose using a mixed exploratory design. In the qualitative section of the current research, 19 experts and stakeholders in the field of elderly services were interviewed using a semi-structured in-depth interview technique. The data were analyzed using the qualitative content analysis method by the MAXQDA software and thus the components of the elderly service model were obtained. In the quantitative section, the research instrument (questionnaire) was developed and a sample of 114 librarians of Tehran was selected using the simple random sampling method. The face validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by four faculty members and the factor validity was assessed by the factor analysis. The reliability of the questionnaire was calculated by the Cronbach's alpha measure and was 0.941. Findings: The proposed model for providing services to the elderly in public libraries has seven components which are as follows, respectively in terms of importance: "building and space", "equipment and tools of ancillary services", "materials and resources for the elderly", "internet services", "human resources", "and "planning and budget". Originality/value: This paper directs the attention of public library managers to this fact  that based on the proposed model, they should identify the elderly's needs and thus provide different services and facilities for them to use public libraries. This will enable the proper and optimal use of their leisure time by elderly people and the advancement of libraries in offering services to visitors.