University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Masters Theses Graduate School 5-2010 The Subject Representation of Core Works in Women's Studies: A Critical Analysis of the Library of Congress Subject Headings Susan E. Wood University of Tennessee - Knoxville, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes Part of the Library and Information Science Commons, and the Women's Studies Commons Recommended Citation Wood, Susan E., "The Subject Representation of Core Works in Women's Studies: A Critical Analysis of the Library of Congress Subject Headings. " Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2010. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/675 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Susan E. Wood entitled "The Subject Representation of Core Works in Women's Studies: A Critical Analysis of the Library of Congress Subject Headings." I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree of Master of Science, with a major in Information Sciences. Bharat Mehra, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Kimberly Black, Suzie Allard Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Susan Elaine Wood entitled “The Subject Representation of Core Works in Women’s Studies: A Critical Analysis of the Library of Congress Subject Headings.” I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, with a major in Information Sciences. Bharat Mehra, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Suzie Allard Kimberly Black Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official student records.) The Subject Representation of Core Works in Women’s Studies: A Critical Analysis of the Library of Congress Subject Headings A Thesis Presented for the Master of Science Degree The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Susan Elaine Wood May 2010 Copyright ©2010 by Susan Elaine Wood All rights reserved. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee, Dr. Bharat Mehra, Dr. Kimberly Black, and Dr. Suzie Allard, for all the encouragement and assistance I received from them in preparing this thesis. I would also like to thank all of the many authors who have inspired me with their feminist critiques of so many topics in Library and Information Sciences. iii ABSTRACT The system of Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) has been the subject of feminist, critical examinations since the 1970s. Subject headings pertaining both to feminist literature and to women in general have been analyzed to determine how LCSH represents these topics. In this study, I contribute to this body of scholarship by analyzing and reporting on the nature of the LCSH subject representation of 52 core works published from 1986-1998 in the areas of feminist theory and women’s movements. These monographs were selected from the 3rd edition of Women’s Studies: A Recommended Bibliography (Krikos & Ingold, 2004). The analysis of works of/on feminist theory and on women’s movements is preceded by a pilot study of 24 core works on the topics of Communications, Film, Television, Media, and Journalism. I utilize the abstracts of these works in Krikos & Ingold (2004), as well as the works themselves, to establish the nature of each monograph’s perspective and scope. To this information I compare the LC subject headings employed in the bibliographic records representing these works in the Library of Congress Online Catalog in order to assess the headings’ usefulness as surrogate representations of these monographs in terms of accuracy, relevance, specificity, and currency. I present my findings as sets of problems and solutions illustrated with specific examples. Overall, LCSH is not able to represent adequately the 24 works in the pilot study sample or the 52 core works in the main study based on its current application. I conclude with a proposed set of subject headings as suggested by the abstracts of these works. iv Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Problem Statement: Library of Congress Subject Headings as Cultural Authority ............................. 1 1.2 Research Question: Subject Access to Women’s Studies Literature .................................................. 3 1.3 Method ............................................................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Significance of the Research ............................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Limitations of the Research ................................................................................................................ 5 Chapter 2: Context and Review of the Literature ......................................................................................... 8 2.1 The Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) .............................................................................. 8 2.2 Defining Women’s Studies ................................................................................................................ 11 2.2.1 The Academic Field .................................................................................................................... 11 2.2.2 The Curricular Development of Women’s Studies..................................................................... 13 2.2.3 The Literature of Women’s Studies ........................................................................................... 14 2.3 Subject Access to Women’s Studies Literature ................................................................................ 18 2.3.1 Systematic Examinations of LCSH Subject Representation of Women’s Studies Literature ..... 18 2.3.2 Control, Diversity, Power, and Objectivity: The User and Common Usage ............................... 22 2.3.3 Terminology: Bias in Naming ..................................................................................................... 26 2.3.4 Creating Change: Development of Thesauri and Actions of Professional Organizations .......... 31 Chapter 3: Theory and Method .................................................................................................................. 36 3.1 Theoretical Approach ........................................................................................................................ 36 3.2 Method: Resources and Guiding Questions ..................................................................................... 36 3.2.1 The Bibliography ........................................................................................................................ 38 3.2.2 Data Sample and Limitations ..................................................................................................... 39 3.3.3 Data Analysis and Presentation ................................................................................................. 42 3.3. Pilot Study ........................................................................................................................................ 43 v 3.3.1 Case Examples ............................................................................................................................ 43 3.3.2 Themes ....................................................................................................................................... 52 3.3.3 Missing Concepts ....................................................................................................................... 54 3.4 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 55 Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion (Analysis of Monographs in “Feminist Theories and Women’s Movements,” Subsection: Feminist Thought and Theories) ...................................................................... 56 4.1 Description of Monographs and Subject Headings........................................................................... 56 4.2 Themes in Subject Representation: Problems and Solutions ........................................................... 58 4.2.1. Use of the heading Feminist theory .......................................................................................... 58 4.2.2. The concepts of sex and gender ............................................................................................... 61 4.2.3. Intersections between schools of thought and types of feminism .......................................... 64 4.2.4. Representation of specific issues