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Before designing a library it is important to consider how people use space.  Much of library planning involves the layout of reading and study areas.  Cohen, in Designing and Planning Libraries, outlines a number of common aspects of human behaviour which influence the way reading areas should be designed. 

Territory is important to people and our sense of our territory influences our actions.  The concept of terrirtory is directly related to our personal space.  Edward Hall providing the following guidelines to personal space.  Within 18" of our body is Intimate Space.  People only allow family friends and lovers in this space.  Personal Distance occurs between 18" and 4'-0".  This is the distance at which friendship occurs.  Social Distance is 4'-0" to 12'-0" and this is the distance for formal relationships such as business. 

These distances help one predict how spaces will be used.  It is easy to observe that readers spread out such that there is one reader per table.  It is infrequent for two people to be sitting at a table when there are still empty tables.  Everyone wants there own territory in a library, hence there own table.  

To prove this assumption Robert Sommer conducted the following experiment in libraries.  While there were many open tables, the participants in Sommer's study sat next to another student already seated at a table.   The student who was already seated at that table would generally try to errect some sort of barricade between themselves and the recently arrived student.  Within 15 minutes the student who had first been sitting at the table would get up and sit somewhere else in the library.  
Since a table is occupied by one person it is best that tables be kept small.  Four seat tables are probably best.  Unlike at six seat table, it is impossible for a person to sit in the middle of the table and thereby occupy the whole table.  

It is also important to consider where people like to sit.  Observations Blackader Lauterman Library provide the following conclusions.  First people appreciate sitting near the windows.  It is always the tables along the windows which are occupied first.  At night these tables are also occupied first.  This results from the fact the people prefer to sit next to walls.  
These observations are corroborated by the writings of Cohen in Designing and Planning Libraries.  Cohen also stresses that tables and study carrels must not force people to sit with their backs to a walkway.  Carrels that do this will not be used.  The chairs however may be dragged anywhere in the library where people feel more comfortable sitting and reading.