Effects of free membership on borrowing behavior in public libraries: An economic perspective through the case of the Library at the Cité des sciences et de l’industrie in Paris

Abstract

Although there is an international movement in favor of free public library services, little research has focused on the economic determinants of user behavior. We examine these determinants through the effect of free access on borrowing. To this end, we analyze the case of the Library at the Cité des sciences et de l’industrie (LSI)—a major French public center for scientific, technical, and industrial culture established in Paris in the 1980s. In 2023, the LSI made its borrowing Pass free for everyone. We examine the effects of this change on users from an economic perspective. Using quantitative data about members and the documents they borrowed between 2022 and 2024, we show that the switch to free membership is correlated with a change in the composition of the library’s members and their borrowing behavior. We interpret this in terms of a substitution effect, a compliance effect and a simplification effect.

Keywords

free library membership fees audiences book borrowing Economics

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