Conceptual models and users

Abstract

The paper presents an analysis of user tasks in the conceptual models, with an overview of the objectives and functions of the catalogue from Cutter to the International Cataloguing Principles, a critical reflection on user tasks and a proposal for a rethinking of these. The user tasks as presented in the conceptual models present critical aspects, in particular they do not bring out some important aspects concerning the users’ motivations for searches and the users’ competences. The presentation of some critical aspects of user Ttasks is followed by an initial proposal for a more complex reflection on how users use catalogues to carry out searches of different kinds.

Keywords

• Conceptual models
• User tasks
• Cataloguing