Organizational Aspects of Collaboration on Local Information Management by Thai Provincial University Libraries

This article aims to explore the aims, ways of working, and problems related to local information within a network of collaborating provincial university libraries in Thailand (PULINET). By applying a theoretical framework of the activity theory and qualitative approach to explore the interaction of activity systems involved in common projects, the article identifies contradictions within separate nodes, between the nodes, and between the collaborating systems. The results show how the collaborating participants overcome emerging difficulties by complying with cultural norms and supporting each other, and how the contradictions in the organization as well as in the transfer of competence and sharing of resources affect their collaboration.