Responsible Recommenders in the Public Library Sector

This project revolves around tracking and disentangling potential ethical concerns of recommender systems, specifically in the context of public libraries. Recommender systems are a prevalent family of algorithms that can have high utility in assisting users when navigating online catalogues, but might hide risks. We aim to investigate whether the incorporation of recommenders in a library’s loaning system serves the organisation’s responsibility and purpose. Ensuring the operationalization of values such as inclusivity in online applications is central within a library’s social standing. In this project, we attempt to translate such values into specific machine-readable criteria and metrics.

The PhD student working on the project is Savvina Daniil, in collaboration with Laura Hollink (CWI)