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The purpose of this paper is to present findings of a study investigating the reading of, and engagement with minority ethnic fiction in UK public libraries, with a particular focus on Black British fiction and Asian fiction in English.

A quantitative study of the reading behaviour of a large population of public library users (n=1,047) from the East Midlands region. A survey was distributed at issue points in 16 libraries in nine participating local authorities, to investigate respondents' reading choices, and factors that may affect these choices.

Findings have emerged regarding the readers and non‐readers of Black British and Asian fiction in English. Social identity theory and reader response theory, whilst initially appearing contradictory, are helpful in understanding patterns of reading behaviour.

The paper provides a valuable starting point for future research in materials portraying, and originating from, minority ethnic communities.

The paper identifies areas in which public libraries, publishing houses and minority ethnic community groups can improve the provision and promotion of minority ethnic fiction.

It is hoped that longer‐term effects will be to increase the involvement of members of all communities in the selection and promotion of culturally appropriate materials.

The paper addresses a gap in previous research and practice, whereby the provision of multicultural resources was always considered only in linguistic, rather than in broader cultural terms, the latter felt to be more appropriate to contemporary society.

The purpose of this paper is to adapt a repertory grid technique to investigate fiction readers’ attitudes and beliefs, with a specific focus on minority ethnic fiction.

The study required participants (n=36) to rate on a seven-point Likert scale a series of 16 provided constructs, using ten main elements, namely, the reader of ten fiction genres. Statistical tests investigated participant agreement across construct ratings, where on average fiction readers are rated on a construct continuum, and the extent to which public library work experience affected participants’ perceptions.

Findings were revealed regarding the perceived characteristics of the readers of ten fiction genres, including minority ethnic fiction. The readers of Asian and Black British fiction were similarly rated, but certain exceptions were also noted which had not been reported in previous research. Although intraclass correlations indicated that ratings were consistent for the more established fiction genres, there was little agreement regarding minority fiction.

The research was potentially limited by the ethnic homogeneity of the sample population and the gender imbalance of same, and (in some cases) a lack of knowledge of minority fiction genres. It was felt that the repertory grid was an effective technique via which to build a rich profile of the fiction reader.

This research could inform the development of fiction collections, and its detailed examination of fiction reader profiles could be adapted in three specific ways, as described in the paper.

Little previous research has been conducted to differentiate between readers of different fiction genres, and less still for those of minority ethnic fiction genres.

Using the public library context, this paper seeks to present research identifying perceived characteristics of fiction readers and their associated genres, with a particular emphasis on the reader of Black British and Asian fiction in the English language.

The paper applies personal construct theory and the associated repertory grid to a mixed method study involving 15 repertory grid interviews, conducted with librarianship Master's students at a UK university.

The findings regarding the perceived profile of the reader were similar to those reported in previous sociological research, but new constructs emerged regarding certain perceived characteristics of both readers and genres.

The method and findings provide a starting‐point for future research in materials portraying, and originating from, minority ethnic communities. With more repeated constructs and a larger sample size, future research could statistically investigate the significance of potential trends and apparent relationships between data.

The paper provides new data regarding the nature and readership of minority ethnic fiction, informing the improvement of its provision and promotion by public libraries.

It is hoped that longer‐term effects will be to increase both public and professional understanding of fiction written by members of minority ethnic communities, and of its potential contribution to the wider body of literature in the English language.

The paper applies personal construct theory and the associated repertory grid technique to a new area of research and practice, with new data having been generated concerning the perceived characteristics of fiction genres, and of their readers.

This study aims to reflect on how the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the social and economic vulnerability of Indian elderly women, thereby making them prone to varied forms of abuse and denying them of the basic rights of secured existence.

This study was conducted by analyzing primary data from government sources that dealt with the aging Indian population and the common predicaments that elderly women experienced during the pandemic. A qualitative interview was conducted in three old-age homes in India where the experiences of 26 elderly female residents were documented for understanding their experiences during the pandemic. The secondary data collected from different newspaper articles and online resources also enabled in perusing the difficulties that they faced both at home and the caregiving space at the critical juncture of COVID-19.

Nearly 73% of the elderly population in the country has faced an incidence in different forms of abuse and exploitation during the subsequent waves of the pandemic. Disrespect and neglect were the most common type of mistreatment and around 23.1% reported physical assault. The elderly women were victimized further on socioeconomic grounds and their rights of living a secured and dignified life were significantly neglected.

The basic premise of this paper operates on the ground that the family as an institution has shunned taking care of the responsibilities vis-a-vis the elderly and therefore formal institutions have been introduced to aid in the conventional caretaking responsibilities in the Indian societal structure. This situation became all the more grave during the pandemic and therefore needed much intervention. This paper follows the theoretical lens of gender theory and case study method to analyze the data.

The HelpAge India report findings entail that elderly women/widows are doubly marginalized in the Indian society, and the COVID-19 pandemic has escalated the caregiver stress on manifold levels, thus exacerbating the problem. As most of the female senior citizens are economically dependent on their children and relatives, financial exploitation became one of the important premise that deprived them of a healthy living both at home and elderly caregiving institution. Despite the prevalence of certain elderly assistance schemes in the country, the older women’s needs and well-being got heavily impacted and their voice gets hardly recognized in the wider spectrum of sociopolitical events. To extend the requisite help and assistance to this socially vulnerable section, the government on September, 2021, launched a pan-India, toll-free helpline number “Elder Line” to provide relevant information on elderly legal and medical aid and guidance on procuring pension.

According to the secondary findings, a significant percentage of elderly women have been susceptible to physical and emotional abuse and factors such as widowhood, economic dependency, physical infirmity, cognitive impairment along with other stressors have aggravated their exposure to ill-treatment during the pandemic span. Thus, to recognize and mitigate the existing problems affecting the elderly subjects, the government should devise the necessary protocols and adopt essential measures to ensure the welfare of the marginalized section and protect their basic rights of a holistic existence.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate what metadata elements for access points currently exist to represent diverse library reading materials, either in libraries or from external sources, as well as what metadata elements for access points are currently not present but are necessary to represent diverse library reading materials.

A field scan of thirteen contemporary metadata schemas identified elements that might serve as potential access points regarding the diversity status of resource creators as well as topical or thematic content. Elements were semantically mapped using a metadata crosswalk to understand the intellectual and conceptual space of the elements. Element definitions and application of controlled vocabularies were also examined where possible to offer an additional context.

Metadata elements describing gender, occupation, geographic region, audience and age currently exist in many schemas and could potentially be used to offer access to diverse library materials. However, metadata elements necessary to represent racial, ethnic, national and cultural identity are currently not present in specific forms necessary for enabling resource access and collection assessment. The lack of distinct elements contributes to the implicit erasure of marginalized identities.

The search for metadata describing diversity is a first step toward enabling more systematic access to diverse library materials. The need for systematic description of diversity to make visible and promote diverse materials is highlighted in this paper. Though the subject of this paper is library organization systems and, for clarity, uses terms specific to the library profession, the issues present are relevant to all information professionals and knowledge organization systems.