Current Cataloging Research Articles

The Changing Landscape of Technical Services Education

Technical Services (TS) has been undergoing many changes in response to societal, technological, and institutional shifts as are many areas within LIS. In addition to understanding changes in cataloging standards, technical services staff must have cultural and behavioral competency to meet the needs of increasingly diverse user populations. To prepare LIS students effectively, technical services educators must continually adapt and update their courses. 
 The Technical Services Education SIG session will include a panel of three educators who will discuss current areas of importance in TS education: innovative online pedagogy, EDI (equity, diversity, and inclusion), and core competencies.
 Susan Rathbun-Grubb will report on the development of a new online course supported by a University of South Carolina Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) Innovative Pedagogy Grant. This includes collaborating with a CTE instructional designer in preparation for teaching the course in Spring 2024. This presentation will describe the creative process and the proposed course plan including objectives, topical coverage, pedagogical strategies, and assessments. Dr. Rathbun-Grubb is interested in having a conversation with attendees about their best practices for teaching TS management online in a student-centered seminar format.
 Lesley Farmer will present on the incorporation of EDI into the Organization of Information course in California State University Long Beach's Teacher (school) Librarian program. An explicit EDI strand was developed for the course, including readings/videos for each module and corresponding learning activities. Students have responded very favorably by actively identifying and addressing EDI issues and by seeing themselves as necessary change agents for social justice. This presentation explains the process, the results, and useful resources.
 Karen Snow is leading an effort to revise the American Library Association’s 2017 Core Competencies for Cataloging and Metadata Professional Librarians and will report on the status of the endeavor. This includes determining if the 2017 Competencies are sufficient for current cataloging and metadata professionals. Dr. Snow will discuss how TS educators help provide a good foundation of cataloging and metadata competencies that best prepares our students for such a rapidly-changing field. 
 After the presentations, audience members will be encouraged to ask questions and offer their own experiences and ideas concerning this area of LIS education. These presentations align well with the ALISE 2023 conference theme of “Bridge the Gap: Teaching, Learning, Practice, and Competencies.”

“He Lied to the People, Saying ‘I Am Nebuchadnezzar’”: Issues in Authority Control for Rebels, Usurpers, Eccentric Nobility, and Dissenting Royalty

Current cataloging guidelines for creating name authority records (NARs) for royalty and nobility assume that an individual’s claim to a royal title is clear and unambiguous. In the case of historical rebels, usurpers, and eccentrics who claim royal titles for themselves, however, the guidelines are not so clear. When we attempt to describe people and places from a disputed past, we actively enter into their struggles for power, but rules documents like Resource Description and Access (RDA) do not address the question of the legitimacy of a claimed title. Fortunately, recent scholarship on self-determination in NARs for living creators and subject terminology for contested political jurisdictions can help us to develop more ethical practices for historical names of ambiguous legitimacy. This paper uses the Nidintu-Bēl/Nebuchadnezzar III, a rebel against the Achaemenid emperor Darius I named in the Behistun Inscription (6th century BCE), as a case study to establish best practices for the identity management of historical representatives of dissenting royalty.

DOCUMENTING THE CATALOGING PRACTICES AND POLICIES AMONG SELECTED LIBRARIES IN KAZAKHSTAN

Objective. A survey was conducted among selected librarian catalogers in Kazakhstan to determine the current cataloging practices and policies being employed in their respective libraries. Methods. Responses suggested that cataloging is still one of the important aspects of the library work even with the emergence of electronic resources. Results. While many were still applying traditional standards such as MARC, AACR, LC and DDC in their descriptive cataloging and authority works, catalogers were interested in new standards such as RDA and BIBFRAME. Conclusions. Finally, interests in having a unified online catalog as well as more trainings on the field of cataloging and metadata librarianship in the future has also been considered by these libraries to improve the quality of their cataloging work.

The Construction and Prospect of China National Bibliography

The national bibliography is a comprehensive and systematic catalog that gathers and records the information of all the publications in a country, and serves as the base for monitoring and managing all the information related. China National Bibliography in modern times has been continuously developed and improved, thanks to the legacies from its past and the experiences of other countries. The present paper first reviews the past and the present of China National Bibliography, then discusses the progress of researches on the application of Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR), and finally explains the survey on the feasibility of adopting the new cataloging standard RDA in China. Although the FRBRization of China National Bibliography, to a certain extent, facilitates the readers’ use, we argue that the FRBRization of the existing MARC data cannot realize all the ideas FRBR creates. There are some problems, such as the distinctions between works and expressions, the construction issues of the bibliographic and authority data. In the process of implementing localized RDA in the cataloging of foreign materials of all languages and types, the National Library of China conducted an investigation into the feasibility of implementing RDA in the cataloging of Chinese literature, finding that although there is not a vast gulf between RDA and current Chinese cataloging standards, a lot of problems do need to be resolved both theoretically and practically. First, the Chinese national standard “Resource Description” of the day and the CNMARC standards need to be improved. Second, it is urgent to reduce the increasing manual workload of the catalogers caused by adopting RDA. Third, both the staff force and the system reserve ability of the member libraries under Online Library Cataloging Center of China should be taken into account. Fourth, RDA would add new data elements, thus the initiation of this new standard simultaneously requires updating and transforming the integrated library system. Last but not the least, the application of RDA also requires the development of corresponding online toolkits to improve the cataloging efficiency.

Records, Responsibility, and Power: An Overview of Cataloging Ethics

Ethics are principles which provide a framework for making decisions that best reflect a set of values. Cataloging carries power, so ethical decision-making is crucial. Because cataloging requires decision-making in areas that differ from other library work, cataloging ethics are a distinct subset of library ethics. Cataloging ethics draw on the primary values of serving the needs of users and providing access to materials. Cataloging ethics are not new, but they have received increased attention since the 1970s. Major current issues in cataloging ethics include the creation of a code of ethics; ongoing debate on the appropriate role of neutrality in cataloging misleading materials and in subject heading lists and classification schemes; how and to what degree considerations of privacy and self-determination should shape authority work; and whether or not our current cataloging codes are sufficiently user-focused.

No Need to Ask

This article will describe how permissionless metadata blockchains could be created to overcome two significant limitations in current cataloging practices: centralization and a lack of traceability. The process would start by creating public and private keys, which could be managed using digital wallet software. After creating a genesis block, nodes would submit either a new record or modifications to a single record for validation. Validation would rely on a Federated Byzantine Agreement consensus algorithm because it offers the most flexibility for institutions to select authoritative peers. Only the top tier nodes would be required to store a copy of the entire blockchain thereby allowing other institutions to decide whether they prefer to use the abridged version or the full version.

Is it Necessary: Quality Control in Cataloging?

Catalogers and technical services departments have always struggled with how much is too much when creating and enhancing bibliographic records as well as with what physical processing is needed to make these materials shelf-ready for timely circulation. Along with these decisions, catalogers also must address what quality control measures, if any, should be in place to guarantee resources are discoverable in the OPAC and discovery service. The authors of this paper describe their process and workflow for the quality control of tangible and electronic resources; they also discuss why quality control is performed. The importance of training cataloging staff on current cataloging rules and practices as a preventive measure to reduce mistakes is an essential part of the process. The ultimate goal of quality control is to eliminate errors and ensure the library’s resources are accessible.

Benchmarking Vended Authority Control Practices in ARL Libraries

ABSTRACTThis article presents the results of a survey designed to benchmark the use of vendors to support authority control activities in Association of Research Libraries member libraries. Such activities include updating authority or bibliographic records, sourcing authority records, participation in cooperative cataloging efforts, and more. The survey investigated whether and how responding libraries used vendors to create and maintain an authority file and process current cataloging records. The survey gathered demographic and other information about the libraries, and the authors sought to identify trends and correlations between these and other factors.

The Catalogers’ Thought Process: A Comparison of Formal and Informal Context

The aim of this article is to analyze how catalogers describe publications without cataloging tools in comparison with the current cataloging process. A total of 46 catalogers took part in the first study, a free description of monographic publications, while 30 catalogers performed original cataloging in their actual environment. A combination of observations and think-aloud protocols was used for data gathering in both studies. The focus was on Slovenian catalogers from different types and sizes of libraries. Results revealed both differences and similarities between catalogers’ mental models in the respective studies.

Survey of Current Retrospective Cataloging Practices: Pre-1976 Government Documents in Regional Depositories and the Importance of Access to Holdings

Among regional depository libraries in the United States, most collections include a large number of government documents published prior to 1976. Much of this material may remain uncataloged because of several factors, including the sheer volume of material that was published during the mid-twentieth century prior to the advent of online catalogs. The availability of the US government’s indexing systems, which allow discoverability through the Superintendent of Documents (SuDocs) classification and Government Printing Office’s (GPO) Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP), has also prompted some depositories to postpone cataloging their older materials, and lack of staffing in many government-documents departments makes retrospective cataloging a lower priority. A survey of regional depository librarians sought to learn about the current retrospective cataloging practices and plans for these materials at various institutions. The survey responses indicate that the majority of regional depositories that responded are working on or already have completed retrospective cataloging for pre-1976 materials. Those that are not cataloging these materials are relying on CGP and library shelf lists to locate materials with SuDoc numbers.Cataloging of these collections provides greater control over these materials and increases their use through the online catalog and interlibrary loan. But it will also assist libraries and GPO in the identification of materials regarding recent Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) initiatives, the Preservation Steward Program, the FDLP Regional Discard Policy program, and Guidelines for Establishing Shared Regional Depository Libraries. Also of consideration is the “Regional Depository Models: A Vision for the Future” presented by the DLC Regional Models Working Group in April 2016, which outlines the benefits of a fully cataloged regional. It can also assist libraries to determine materials for possible in-house digitization by identifying titles that have few holdings in OCLC and that have a relevance to the institution or state.

New Approaches to Subject Indexing at the British Library

ABSTRACTThe constantly changing metadata landscape means that libraries need to re-think their approach to standards and subject analysis, to enable the discovery of vast areas of both print and digital content. This article presents a case study from the British Library that assesses the feasibility of adopting FAST (Faceted Application of Subject Terminology) to selectively extend the scope of subject indexing of current and legacy content, or implement FAST as a replacement for all LCSH in current cataloging workflows.

The H. Winslow Fegley Collection at the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center

Abstract In 1952 ninety-year-old Daisy Gery of Upper Hanover Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, donated photographer Harry Winslow Fegley's glass plate negatives and photographic prints to the Schwenkfelder Historical Library in Pennsburg, Montgomery County. Over the intervening sixty-plus years, this collection has become one of the most significant at the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center (SLHC), as the institution is now known. The author provides a brief history of the photographer, journalist, and business owner H. Winslow Fegley that describes his activities beyond what he is most recognized for—photographs of rural Pennsylvania landscape and the lives of its inhabitants at the turn of the twentieth century. The article concludes with a discussion of current cataloging and digitization efforts of the collection at the SLHC.

Contemporary Cataloguing Policy and Practice in Australian Libraries

A survey of current cataloguing practice and policy was conducted amongst a structured sample of 40 Australian libraries from the academic, public, school and special sectors. Responses suggested that while catalogues and other bibliographic databases may be merging, there was still significant demand for cataloguers – even growing demand in some cases, with records for increasing numbers of online resources being created. Moreover, these records were being created mostly by professionals, who were still engaged in traditional activities such as authority control and applying conventional standards such as MARC21, LCSH and DDC. The research found little evidence that cataloguing was being any further deskilled. There was considerable interest in the new standard, RDA, though it looks like AACR-based records will continue to be imported into catalogues for quite some time to come. Less evidence than might be expected was found in relation to the application of other bibliographic standards, such as those u...

New Perspectives on the Shared Cataloging Environment and a MARC 21 Shopping List

This paper surveys the cataloging literature to collect problems that have been identified with the MARC 21 format. The problems are sorted into (1) problems that are not the fault of MARC 21; (2) problems that perhaps are not problems at all; (3) problems that are connected with the current shared cataloging environment; and 4) other problems with MARC 21 and vendor implementation of it. The author makes recommendations to deal with the true MARC 21 problems that remain after this analysis.

FRBRizing Bibliographic Records Focusing on Identifiers and Role Indicators in the Korean Cataloging Environment

This study aims to find a method to adapt Korean bibliographic records to the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) structure. It also intends to verify that this conversion is possible without main entry or uniform headings because there is no rule for choice and form of the main headings in the current Korean Cataloging Rules. In this article we reviewed the role of identifiers and role indicators for FRBRizing. Also, we analyzed the characteristics of the Korean cataloging environment, focusing on the bibliographic records and authority records based on the current cataloging rules. As a result, we suggested the methodology for FRBRizing Korean bibliographic records by the combination of identifiers and role indicators. Although there is not much information about global identifiers or relator codes in bibliographic records based on the KORMARC at present, the FRBRizing method using identifiers and role indicators would be more effective for the global and networked information environment than the method using main entry or uniform headings.

A Survey of Batch Cataloging Practices and Problems

Groups of bibliographic records are added to library catalogs with increasing frequency. Batch cataloging requires knowledge of bulk record transfer as well as current cataloging standards. While more efficient than cataloging items individually, batch cataloging requires different skills and creates new challenges. Responses to a wide-ranging online survey document the workload, tools, practices, and problems of batch cataloging. The unique characteristics of electronic resources affect many aspects of batch cataloging. Survey respondents lack consensus on how to share improved batch records, and recent trends in the bibliographic environment seem to make a networked solution less likely.

From artifacts to aggregations: Modeling scientific life cycles on the semantic Web

AbstractIn the process of scientific research, many information objects are generated, all of which may remain valuable indefinitely. However, artifacts such as instrument data and associated calibration information may have little value in isolation; their meaning is derived from their relationships to each other. Individual artifacts are best represented as components of a life cycle that is specific to a scientific research domain or project. Current cataloging practices do not describe objects at a sufficient level of granularity nor do they offer the globally persistent identifiers necessary to discover and manage scholarly products with World Wide Web standards. The Open Archives Initiative's Object Reuse and Exchange data model (OAI‐ORE) meets these requirements. We demonstrate a conceptual implementation of OAI‐ORE to represent the scientific life cycles of embedded networked sensor applications in seismology and environmental sciences. By establishing relationships between publications, data, and contextual research information, we illustrate how to obtain a richer and more realistic view of scientific practices. That view can facilitate new forms of scientific research and learning. Our analysis is framed by studies of scientific practices in a large, multidisciplinary, multi‐university science and engineering research center, the Center for Embedded Networked Sensing.

Series Authority Control at Oregon State University after the Library of Congress’s Series Policy Change

The Library of Congress (LC) decided to suspend creating series authority records on May 1, 2006 and to transcribe all future series statements as untraced. To evaluate the effect on cataloging workload at Oregon State University (OSU) Libraries, bibliographic records were examined for untraced series statements from June 1, 2006 to December 31, 2007. Series titles were then searched in the Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) and corrected to match the authority record, if necessary. Series titles not found in the LCNAF were evaluated according to current cataloging rules and corrected if necessary. Of the 53,911 records added to OSU Libraries’ catalog during the study, 977 (2 percent) had an untraced series statement. Only 60 (6 percent) of the 977 were records created by the LC after the 2006 decision. The majority of records (64 percent) with untraced series statements were records created by the Government Printing Office. Many untraced series were also found in records for materials with publication dates before 2000, most resulting from a serials retrospective conversion project. The data suggest that the LC’s policy change has not created a large cataloging burden and, with relatively little effort, OSU Libraries catalogers are able to continue to provide users with authorized series title access.

The Tao of Serials: 101 Things Non-Catalogers Should Know About Serials … or Is It Continuing Resources?

Serial catalog records must be interpreted and understood by a wide variety of catalog users: collection development, acquisitions, public services staff, patrons, and even catalogers themselves. This NASIG preconference workshop covered past and current cataloging rules as well as how the applications of these rules are recorded in the MARC 21 format. Key MARC fields were explained, and the presenters demonstrated how some OPACs handle serials-specific information to either the benefit or detriment of catalog users. Also discussed was the expanded definition of continuing resources and how the application of this definition affects cataloging decisions. New standards for next generation catalogs will need to take into account the FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records) conceptual model as well as the development of other metadata content and communication standards beyond both AACR2 and MARC 21.

Introduction to Health Sciences Librarianship

Introduction to Health Sciences Librarianship