MOTIVATIONS, CHALLENGES, AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF LIBRARY WORK IN BIBLIOTHERAPY
Keywords:
librarian practice, bibliotherapy, bibliotherapy in BrazilAbstract
The professional field of librarians has become increasingly versatile, and bibliotherapy has emerged as one of its possible areas of practice. Bibliotherapy is a practice that uses reading as a tool to promote health and well-being, playing a transformative role in the personal and professional lives of both facilitators and participants. Professionals engaged in bibliotherapy come from different fields of knowledge; however, Library and Information Science has assumed a significant leading role in this area. In this context, this article, derived from the dissertation “Trilhares da Biblioterapia pelo Brasil: memória de profissionais em movimento” (“Trails of Bibliotherapy Across Brazil: Memory of Professionals in Motion”), aims to present the role of librarians in bibliotherapy practices developed throughout Brazil. The study adopted a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative perspectives. Data were collected through an online questionnaire using the snowball sampling method and subsequently analyzed based on Minayo’s (2012) framework. A total of 90 participants responded to the survey, from which the responses of librarians were selected for this analysis. The findings contributed to a broader understanding of bibliotherapy as an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary field of professional practice, while also highlighting motivations, challenges, academic contributions, and other relevant aspects that may support the strengthening of the practice and reflections on its future development.