Läsandets läkande kraft : Folkbibliotekens roll i arbetet mot psykisk ohälsa i pandemins spår

Sammanfattning: We are currently living under a world wide COVID-19 pandemic. Due to restrictions in peoples every day life, people getting ill and dying there might be a risk of increase of mental illness in society. The purpose of this thesis is to take a closer look at how Swedish public libraries are using methods like shared reading and bibliotherapy as a way to cope with mental illness within society. What do librarians think about the possibility of using reading as a way to heal mental illness? What do they think about skill development within shared reading and bibliotherapy, and what are the opportunities for them to gain that development? What role does the librarian play in all this? Interviews with 4 librarians working within bigger and smaller city public libraries have been conducted as a method. 2 of them are working with shared reading on a daily basis, 1 of which is working within custody/prison enviroment whilst the remaining 2 do not have any experience in working with shared reading nor bibliotherapy.Theory used for the thesis analysis is David Russel and Caroline Shrode’s concepts of identification, catharsis and insight. The analysis also makes use of Elizabeth Brewster’s development of said theory and the use of 4 different kinds of bibliotherapy namely informative, escapist, social and emotional bibliotherapy. Results show how these theories are implemented in practice when used by librarians in order to help changing values, thinking and behaviour amongst inmates and people suffereing from mental health issues. Also, results show how libraries and other organizations like the public healthcare currently co-operate and how they can develop their co-operation for a future in which we might see an increase of mental health issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic.