Efektivita služeb poskytovaných veřejnými knihovnami – případová studie české republiky/The effectiveness of the services provided by public libraries – a case study of the Czech republic Efficiency is

Efektivnost je v současné době velmi často diskutovaným pojmem a čím dál více se týká i veřejného sektoru. Teorie veřejného sektoru napovídá, že veřejný sektor, bohužel, zcela přirozeně tenduje k neefektivnosti. To však neznamená, že bychom se neměli snažit hledat cesty, jak onu „přirozenou míru neefektivnosti“ co nejvíce snížit. V současné době existuje již mnoho příkladů, které dokazují, že takové cesty je možné najít a že nové postupy opravdu umožňují daleko efektivněji využít veřejné prostředky.

The effectiveness of the services provided by public libraries – a case study of the Czech republic

Efficiency is currently very often discussed concept and increasingly is applied also to the public sector. It can be also applied to public libraries and the services they provide. This paper aims to present the current results of the research project, commissioned six years ago by the Czech Ministry of Culture. The project is realized in participation of the Municipal Library of Prague (as the largest public library in the Czech Republic and holder of a research project) and two economic faculties, one from the University of Pardubice, second from Matej Bel University in Banska Bystrica. The paper presents the evidence that the contingent valuation method can be used for the services´ (provided by the library) valuation and determining the approximate benefit to the reader as a consumer of these service. The paper discusses the possibility of using the other methods to deliver (according to the authors of the research) more accurate results. The authors also provide the anonymised cost-benefit analysis results of the forties of the Czech libraries where the described method has been successfully applied.