End-User Understanding of Subject Headings in Library Catalogs

Drabenstott, Karen Markey; Simcox, Schelle; Fenton, E. G.

doi:10.5860/lrts.43n3.140

Cited by 20 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…We know that novice catalog users most of ten search the subject index, that library users in general have little understand ing of the LCSHs that comprise the con trolled vocabulary used in the catalog's subject index, and that users experience the most difficulty searching the subject index, which is frequently manifested in high proportions of no-hits searches. [58][59][60] Thus, finding ways to improve the sub ject-searching experiences of users of this shared catalog by, for example, reducing the frequency of subject no-hits search results, is of particular concern.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The author assumed that converting subject no-hits search terms to be in compliance with LC policy governing the creation LCSH cross-references may be less help ful, a supposition partially corroborated by a study of catalog users' understand ing of LCSH that found that users as signed correct meanings to less than half of the LCSHs they examined. 44 Most subject no-hits searches poten tially representing topics covered by ma terials in the library's cataloged collec tions were found to be amenable to en hancement 1. Some, however, were dis covered to represent combinations of top ics (e.g., weight and body image, and eth ics in sport psychology) for which no single LCSH could be found.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Subject No-hits Searches in an Academic Library Online Catalog: An Exploration of Two Potential Ameliorations

Graham

2004

CRL

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This paper describes a study that explored ways in which users’ subject-searching problems in a local online catalog might be reduced. On a weekly basis, the author reviewed catalog transaction logs to identify topics of subject searches retrieving no records for which appropriate information resources may actually be represented in the catalog. For topics thus identified, the author explored two potential ameliorations of the no-hits search results through the use of authority record cross-references and “pathfinder” records providing brief instructions on search refinement. This paper describes the study findings, discusses possible concerns regarding the amelioration methods used, outlines additional steps needed to determine whether the potential ameliorations make a difference to users’ searching experiences, and suggests related areas for further research.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

Subject No-hits Searches in an Academic Library Online Catalog: An Exploration of Two Potential Ameliorations

Graham

2004

CRL

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“…Generally, the goal of this research is to make better matches between cataloging systems and users' queries (Bates, 1998;Dervin & Nilan, 1986). Examples include the many catalog use studies that have been performed (for an overview see e.g., Borgman, 1986) and research that focuses on users' interaction with specific cataloging standards (see, e.g., Drabenstott et al, 1999). Rarely does research in this area take the user as the focus; one exception is Carlyle's (1999) research on user categorization of works.…”

Section: Focusing On Users In Cataloging Research and Standardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying the User-Centered Paradigm to Cataloging Standards in Theory and Practice: Problems and Prospects

Hoffman¹

2011

nasko

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Dervin and Nilan's (1986) article, "Information needs and uses," has been an influential article in Library and Information Science (LIS), because it calls for a paradigm shift in LIS away from research that focuses on systems and standards to research that focuses on users. This article also has been influential on library and information practice. Librarians and other information workers are called on to be user-centered and place users at the center of library programs and services. Conforming to the user-centered paradigm, however, has been problematic for broad representational systems, like library cataloging, that must meet the diverse needs of global users. Despite calls to focus on users, the cataloging field has not taken a user-centered approach in research or in the development of cataloging standards. Instead, the responsibility to meet users' needs has been placed on cataloging practitioners, who are encouraged to customize bibliographic records to meet their local users' needs. Dissertation research by Hoffman (2008) suggests that catalogers are limited in their ability to customize bibliographic records, because catalogers do not know who their users are and cannot identify their users' needs. In addition, library administrators discourage customization in favor of efficient cataloging processes. There are limits to LIS's user-centered paradigm in the area of cataloging, and perhaps it needs to examined and reconsidered. Is the user-centered paradigm still applicable to cataloging? How should cataloging meet users' needs? This paper will examine the problems of the user-centered paradigm in cataloging.

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“…Some empirical studies have suggested that users have difficulty understanding the meaning of controlled index languages when index terms occur in various subdivision orders and contexts of display (e.g., Drabenstott, Simcox, and Williams, 1999;Keen, 1977). To make the best use of human-developed index terms, it is important to determine whether the intended users of index terms are able to correctly interpret the intended meaning of these terms as assigned by human indexers, and assess what the impact of user's interpretations has on search effectiveness.…”

Section: Assessment Of Human-developed Index Termsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terms on information seeking effectiveness

Liu

2009

SIGIR Forum

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To what extent do MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terms improve search effectiveness of different kinds of users? We observed four different kinds of searchers using an experimental information retrieval (IR) system: (1) search novices; (2) domain experts; (3) search experts and (4) medical librarians. The information needs were a subset of the relatively difficult topics originally created for the Text REtrieval Conference (TREC). By experimental design, we used 20 search topics in an IR user experiment to alleviate search topic variability. Effectiveness of retrieval was based on the relevance judgments set provided by TREC. Thirty-two participants searched either using a version of the system in which abstracts and MeSH terms were displayed or another version in which they had to formulate their own terms based only on the display of abstracts. We found that MeSH terms were more useful for domain experts than for search experts in terms of the precision measure, even though domain experts did not perceive that MeSH terms were useful. We speculate that because of the technical topics, only the domain experts had the knowledge to understand and therefore make use of the MeSH terms. The primary contributions of this research are: (1) assessment of relative impact of searchers characteristics of domain knowledge and search training on search effectiveness and (2) design and methodology for assessing the usefulness of controlled vocabulary. The effort to create MeSH terms is worthwhile for domain experts' searches on technical topics.

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End-User Understanding of Subject Headings in Library Catalogs

Cited by 20 publications

References 0 publications

Subject No-hits Searches in an Academic Library Online Catalog: An Exploration of Two Potential Ameliorations

Subject No-hits Searches in an Academic Library Online Catalog: An Exploration of Two Potential Ameliorations

Applying the User-Centered Paradigm to Cataloging Standards in Theory and Practice: Problems and Prospects

The impact of MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terms on information seeking effectiveness

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