Cultural competence and humility in Librarianship
perspectives for culturally responsive and socially just libraries
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5433/1981-8920.2025v30n3p21Keywords:
Cultural Competence, Cultural Humility, Libraries, Social JusticeAbstract
Objective: To investigate the application and implications of cultural competence and humility in Library Science. The aim is specifically to analyze their origins, definitions, theoretical models, and critiques, as well as to explore how these approaches can be adapted and implemented in the context of libraries.
Methodology: This is a theoretical-exploratory study with a qualitative approach, grounded in a non-exhaustive literature review conducted using the Web of Science and BRAPCI databases, focusing on cultural competence and cultural humility. The research draws upon theorists who discuss these concepts in the fields of Health and Social Work (Cross et al., 1989; Tervalon and Murray-García, 1998, among others), as well as in the field of Library and Information Science (Montiel-Overall, 2009; Mestre, 2010; Blackburn, 2020, among others).
Results: The results indicate that traditional models of cultural competence should be revised to include aspects of cultural humility, such as continuous self-assessment and commitment to correcting power imbalances. It is highlighted that the integration of these approaches can promote more inclusive services and collections that are responsive to the needs of marginalized communities.
Conclusions: It is concluded that this integration contributes to social justice and equity in libraries, recommending empirical studies to validate such theories
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Copyright (c) 2025 Vanessa Levati Biff, Daniel Conte
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