Controlled vocabulary

A controlled vocabulary is a curated set of terms used consistently to describe concepts or resources. Its defined terms and relationships support consistent indexing, retrieval, and information exchange.

Preferred term: The designated label used to represent a concept within a controlled vocabulary. Preferred terms provide the consistent labels that distinguish controlled vocabularies from unrestricted wording.
Indexing: The assignment of terms or identifiers to documents or other information resources to support retrieval. Controlled vocabularies standardize the terms assigned during subject indexing.
Free-text search: A search method that matches words or phrases without requiring them to come from an authorized term set. Unlike controlled indexing, it accepts varied wording but may miss synonyms or retrieve irrelevant matches.
Charles Ammi Cutter: An American librarian whose work shaped cataloging principles and subject access in libraries. Cutter's cataloging principles helped establish systematic approaches to subject headings.
Vocabulary bias: Systematic distortion in terms or categories that reflects the assumptions and power structures of a vocabulary's creators. Curated labels can reproduce exclusions or stereotypes while appearing neutral.
Synonym control: The practice of linking alternative expressions for the same concept to one authorized term. It gathers variant wording under the vocabulary's chosen label.
Information retrieval: The process of finding relevant information in collections of documents or data. Consistent terms can improve how retrieval systems match queries to indexed resources.
Folksonomy: An informal classification system created when users apply their own tags to resources. Folksonomies rely on unconstrained user labels rather than curated, standardized terms.
Library of Congress Subject Headings: A controlled subject vocabulary used to describe materials in library catalogs. Its development illustrates the long-running institutional use of standardized subject terms.
Subject access: The ways people identify and retrieve resources by what those resources are about. Vocabulary choices determine which subjects are visible and which searches succeed.

Linked from 12 pages