Studying reader profiles at the Bibliothèque nationale de France

The François-Mitterrand site at the Bibliothèque nationale de France houses two libraries. The upper garden level is open to all readers aged sixteen and over, while the lower garden library is open to accredited researchers. The upper garden level offers encyclopaedic collections on open shelving as well as access to on-line catalogues and a full range of electronic resources and internet. The lower garden level likewise offers encyclopaedic collections on open shelving as well as access to the heritage collections. User numbers at the lower garden level have been in constant progression since the site was first opened, while user numbers on the upper garden level have fallen off in the last five years. An in-depth study of user data for 2009 gives a detailed snapshot of the socio-demographic profile of users and their reading habits for each level.
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