Re-looking at S. R. Ranganathan's Five Laws of Library Science

Abstract

S. R. Ranganathan’s work Five Laws of Library Science published in 1931 shaped library science and has served as a foundation for the profession of librarianship. The five laws of librarianship need to be revised as technology progressed in society. With the rise of digital libraries, however, it is essential to take a second look at these laws and see how they've held up in the face of new technologies. This study tries to explain how the theory is put into practice and to identify areas where it needs to be reformulated for the benefit of libraries. The Five Laws of Library Science by S. R. Ranganathan was reviewed for this research's literature study, and the five rules were combined with the traits of Generation Z to create new laws that are appropriate for this period. The research’s primary conclusions are (1) Information: Emphasize Content Over Container; (2) User Engagement; (3) Quantitative Information Analysis; and (4) Common Learning (Online and Offline).