Effectively using Library of Congress Subject Headings can greatly improve the quality of your research by allowing you to quickly identify all available works on a given subject.
Disadvantages of Keyword Searching
- A search will find all items that contain your keyword, even records that are out of context with your search. You'll often have to scroll through pages of results.
- They require multiple searches using different terms that express the same concept: child, youth, joven, juventud, young adult, adolescent, etc.).
Advantages of Subject Headings
- They indicate the subject/content of a substantial portion of a work.
- They provide a clear and systematic way of scanning a catalog or database for what is needed.
- They are often used to categorize articles in scholarly databases.
- They bring like materials together under a single concept. .
Why Use Subject Headings?
- This controlled vocabulary has been developed over many years and the terms used may be other than what is expected. New and “current-events” terms may take years before becoming accepted subject headings. Keyword searching of newer terms may miss the classic and well-respected sources in a given field.
- Subject Headings contain many cross-references from terms which are not used in a catalog, to terms that are used: some are from familiar to unfamiliar words, others suggest more specific or more general headings to check.
- LC Subject Headings are standardized throughout the country, making searching of multiple library catalogs easier.
How to Use Subject Headings
- Start with a keyword search using the terms you think are best for your search.
- Scan the first page of results from your search. Select an item of interest.
- Take a look at this record, for example:
- The subject headings listed here greatly expand on the information available in the title alone.
- Create a working list of subject headings (and keywords) that relate to your information need.
- Follow the links in the record or do your own subject heading searches using these newly identified terms.
- Do subject heading searches in the Tulane University Libraries Catalog and other catalogs and databases. With this approach, you can be sure that you being as comprehensive as possible while learning about the organization of information on your given topic.
- To identify the best LC Subject Headings for your search, consult the "Library of Congress Subject Headings" red books located at the Latin American Library Reference Desk, pay attention to the subject headings listed in the catalog records for titles you've already identified, or contact us for research assistance.
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