Technology and identity in the public library: An audio diary study of workers with underrepresented identities

Abstract

Workplace technology has significantly changed the nature of work, including where and when work is performed and what tasks a worker is responsible for. Less is known, however, about the impact of these technologies on the identities of workers—particularly the ways in which technology threatens these identities. Through an analysis of audio diaries from 22 public library workers, this study considered the impact of technology in public libraries on the identities of library workers. Findings revealed several ways in which library workers perceive technology as threatening to the competency-based, value-based, and authenticity-based self-esteem they derived from their role, group, and personal identities