Library of Congress Subject Headings

The shortcomings and limitations of Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) are examined, focusing on problems of subject term specificity, inconsistent identification and selection of concepts as subject headings, retention of outmoded headings, inadequate cross-reference structure, and low level of indexing exhaustivity. These problems are attributable to both Cutter's Rules for a Dictionary Catalog (the theoretical model upon which LCSH are based), and the unsystematic manner in which LC has applied Cutter's Rules in constructing entries for its subject catalog. Methods of improving subject access in libraries, for both on-line and printed catalog environments, are discussed.