Acceso usuarios
Jessica K. Anderson, Yan Quan
To increase patrons’ ability to find resources, it is imperative to investigate barriers and biases in the descriptive catalog data for inclusive collection management and development standards. This study used a specially designed descriptive approach to gather quantitative data from 101 public librarians in Connecticut via a Qualtrics survey to identify the key variables that influence the successful enhancement of online public access catalog (OPAC) metadata after a diversity audit of the library materials. The results revealed factors that promote or impede the integration of inclusive cataloging that reflects the diversity of the community: (1) appreciating the benefits of audit methods that are focused on bibliographic records, (2) recognizing the need for buy-in and participation from the entire organization, and (3) stressing the useful integration of institutional and community feedback to improve the collection’s accessibility and representation. The findings provide practical advice to public libraries that want to satisfy the diverse demands of their user base by integrating critical cataloging frameworks into their diversity and inclusion objectives.
