Inequities in Public Library Branch Access and Children's Book Circulation in a Midwestern American City

Abstract

Literacy development is a complex process. It is well established that the Home Literacy Environment influences literacy development. To better understand the influence of the Neighborhood Literacy Environment, we examined the distribution of public library branches across neighborhoods in an American midwestern city and associations between book circulation rates and childhood poverty rates. This study used children's book circulation data provided by the Hamilton County Public Library in the state of Ohio (U.S.). The primary outcome variable was the branch-specific, five-year mean circulation rate of books-per-child living within the branch neighborhood. The predictor variable was the childhood poverty rate of the neighborhood. There was a significant, moderate negative correlation between book circulation and childhood poverty rates (Spearman's r= -0.52, p<0.001). Using data from a public library system in a large midwestern American city, this study found significant disparities in branch access and children's book circulation in high-poverty neighborhoods.

Keywords

• children's books
• equitable access
• literacy
• neighborhood literacy environment
• public libraries