Academic Libraries in 2018: A Comparison of Makerspaces within Academic Research Libraries

This chapter reports the results of a survey deployed to 113 of the 124 Association of Research Libraries (ARL) members on the current role makerspaces play in academic libraries. Nearly one-quarter of ARL institutions ( n = 26; 23%) indicated they have a makerspace. This research analyzes ARL institutions who have established makerspaces within their physical library spaces. This chapter describes the physical aspects of makerspaces, programs and marketing, and demographic details (Bagley, 2014). According to the respondents, what constitutes a makerspace depends on the patrons ARL institutions serve.