LIBRARIES AS FACTORS TO SUPPORT SOCIETAL SECURITY

The link between culture and identity is a close one, being the identity card of each nation. Protecting a set of values, beliefs, traditions and characteristics gives rise to the concept of societal security and the dynamics of the concept at the level of society. On the one hand this paper focuses on the transformation that public libraries have undergone over time, precisely to ensure their continuity in the community. Libraries have adapted to the needs of the individual and the community they serve, becoming community hubs. At the same time, the work aims to explore the existing connections between libraries and the concepts of societal security, social inclusion and democracy. The relevance of the study consists in the analysis of the social and cultural performances achieved by the libraries in the activities carried out and the implications on societal security. The research methodology focuses both on the analysis of the available documents that give us an overview of library activities and the community's involvement in these activities, as well as on a quantitative survey method, which was applied to a sample of 54 public librarians from Romania, the respondents being selected both from urban and rural areas