Athena Salaba

Functional requirements for subject authority data (FRSAD) : a conceptual model

The purpose of authority control is to ensure consistency in representing a value - a name of a person, a place name, or a term or code representing a subject - in the elements used as access points in information retrieval. The primary purpose of this study is to produce a framework that will provide a clearly stated and commonly shared understanding of what the subject authority data/record/file aims to provide information about, and the expectation of what such data should achieve in terms of answering user needs.

What Is Next for Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records? A Delphi Study.

This article reports on a Delphi study conducted to determine key issues and challenges facing Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) research and practice. The Delphi panel consisted of thirty‐three experts in the field who participated in a three‐round issue‐raising and consensus‐building process via a Web‐based survey instrument designed for this study. The panel members were asked to raise critical issues in each of five major areas based on themes in existing literature: (1) the FRBR model, (2) FRBR and related standards, (3) FRBR application, (4) FRBR system development, and (5) FRBR research. These issues were categorized and then rated for importance in the follow‐up rounds. The results of this study provide a list of the most critical issues, based on importance ratings and group consensus, for future FRBR research and practice in each FRBR area.

What Do Users Tell Us about FRBR-Based Catalogs?

FRBR user research has been the least addressed area in FRBR research and development. This article addresses the research gap in evaluating and designing catalogs based on FRBR user research. It draws from three user studies concerning FRBR-based catalogs: (1) user evaluation of three FRBR-based catalogs, (2) user participatory design of a prototype catalog based on the FRBR model, and (3) user evaluation of the resulting FRBR prototype catalog. The major findings from the user studies are highlighted and discussed for future development of FRBR-based catalogs that support various user tasks.

Functional requirements for subject authority records (FRSAR): a conceptual model of aboutness

Provides a brief overview of the activities of the IFLA Functional Requirements for Subject Authority Records (FRSAR) working group. Introduces the groups terms of reference and the work completed so far, including definitions of user tasks and subject entities. Discusses the development of the entity-relationship conceptual model of subject entities in the bibliographic universe.

FRBR implementation and user research

The IFLA Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) conceptual model, published in 1998, focuses on the representation of the bibliographic universe, using an entity-relationship model [1]. It has direct and great impact to the whole area of knowledge organization, especially the description, access, and sharing of bibliographic resources. As a conceptual model, FRBR is subject to various interpretations and implementations. This panel will focus on practical aspects of FRBR and related user studies: FRBR model validation, FRBR user research, FRBR/FAO model implementation and benefits, and RDA vocabulary developments based on FRBR.

Visualizations of bibliographic information: A user experience study

Bibliographic information was presented using five different prototype systems, including four different visualizations of FRBR-based bibliographic information and one more traditional bibliographic information system. This study reports user performance and perceptions using the same tasks across the different visualizations. Users include undergraduate students of a large university in the USA. The study’s methodology is based on a continuation of a study testing the same prototype interfaces in Slovenia, with a number of modifications. The findings show visualization displays performing better on a number of measures than the traditional library catalog interface. A comparison of results highlights some of the differences in findings between the two groups of users. The paper concludes with a discussion on the implications for the design of future bibliographic information interfaces.

User Interactions with Bibliographic Information Visualizations.

The paper presents preliminary results on a study testing user interactions with five prototype systems, including four different visualizations of FRBR-based bibliographic information and one more typical bibliographic information system. Performance and perceptions findings using the same tasks across the different visualizations are reported with a discussion on the implications for the design of future bibliographic information interfaces.

User Testing of Prototype Systems in Two Different Environments: Preliminary Results

The paper presents a preliminary report on two studies testing the same prototype system user interfaces in Slovenia and the USA. A comparison of results highlights some of the differences in performance and preferences between the two studies and leads to a discussion of possible implications for testing in different cultural environments on one hand and on the other hand, the question of universally accepted user interfaces.

User Verification of the FRBR Conceptual Model and Testing of FRBR Prototypes

FRBR is a conceptual model of the bibliographic universe. While FRBR is focused on end-users, no user studies were performed for its development. Since its release, two research groups, one at University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and another at Kent State University, USA, started to systematically verify the FRBR model with users. This paper will provide an overview of several studies performed so far that focus on the exploration of mental models of end-users, the verification of attributes needed to support user tasks and the testing of FRBR prototypes. The results validate the FRBR conceptual model and confirm that FRBR can be the basis for the development of bibliographic information systems that provide more effective user information seeking than the traditional catalogs.

Appendix B. Relationship of FRSAD with FRBR and FRAD

Two models, FRAD (by FRANAR Working Group) and FRSAD (by FRSAR Working Group), complement and further develop some aspects of the original model of FRBR. The three models together have been labelled the ‘FRBR family’, suggesting that they are all considered parts of a larger general model. There exist some differences among them, though; the respective FRBR, FRANAR and FRSAR working groups have made different modelling decisions during their independent model development. Eventually FRBR, FRAD and FRSAD will have to be harmonised and a resultant new consolidated model will be developed. In order to facilitate this process the FRSAR Working Group takes this opportunity to list the most important differences below.