Proposal for a publicness evaluation model for libraries

This paper proposes a publicness evaluation model for libraries (PEML) designed in the light of various theoretical approaches and models applied to public spaces. The PEML captures the multidimensional nature of publicness, because it embraces the concept of a vertical and a horizontal structure with geographical and non-geographical, material and non-material dimensions, for a comprehensive understanding. The PEML can be broken down into its component units, so it can be used for individual analysis of each of the ways in which a library is public: as a space, as a collective subject, and as an object of debate and representation. The PEML proposal is a milestone in library evaluation, because it is the first model of its kind and because it is conceived to evaluate all public access libraries, not just government-run libraries.