Cataloging Library Resources in a South African Public Library: A Case Study of Professional Knowledge

Abstract

The paper examines the knowledge and practices of catalogers at the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Public Libraries (CCTML). The study aims to understand the extent to which catalogers understand current and emerging cataloging practices and to make recommendations for improving practice. The extent of access and the use of library resources depends greatly upon the quality of the library catalog. The following research questions were formulated: what cataloging knowledge do catalogers of CCTML have? How is cataloging carried out in CCTML? What challenges do catalogers of CCTML experience in cataloging library resources? Qualitative approach and case study design were employed. The population of the study was made of 6 catalogers. Data was collected through the focus group interview. Findings indicated that catalogers had knowledge of cataloging standards. They downloaded the catalog records from the OCLC although, they also created original catalog records in case they did not find the matching manifestations on OCLC. Moreover, they experienced challenges of assigning subject headings for non-roman scripts, allocation of the correct classification notation and the advanced use of the cataloging standards. The study recommends the exchange programmes in cataloguing, use of technological tools, artificial intelligence in cataloging.