”Children's librarians are rather cocky!” : some Swedish children's librarians working situation, analysed using the concepts of Pierre Bourdieu.

The purpose of this master thesis is to investigate how some children's librarians view their working situation. There is one main question and three subquestions at issue: How is the working situation of the children's librarians today described by agents on the library field? - Are children's librarians ascribed any value and has this changed during the last three decades'? - What is the apprehension of children's librarians and what qualities should they possess? - What is considered to be most important about work of children's librarians'? The thesis is based on qualitative interviews with children's librarians, library managers and library consultants. The interviews are analysed by the help of Pierre Bourdieu theoretical concepts; capital, habitus, field, doxa and distinction. Today, children's librarians are ascribed capital by their librarian colleagues because of their specialist qualifications. Also agents outside the library field ascribe them capita) and the capital has increased. The children's librarians have developed strategies to maintain and increase capital. They look after their interests at the library and develop collaborations with other municipal institutes. The habitus of children's librarians includes characteristics like being committed, creative, outgoing and able to communicate with children on children's turns. They are educated in to their habitus at librarian's meetings, extension courses and interaction with each other. According to themselves, the most important parts of their work, their doxa, regards children's reading and language. Their situation of work is trying, and they do not feel that their ideas get the same attention as earlier.Uppsatsnivå: