Subject Search

The most effective method of identifying what books the libraries have on a topic is to determine and use relevant Library of Congress subject headings. Subject headings are standardized terms and phrases used to describe the overall topics of a book. Subject headings identify books on the same or very similar topics in uniform terms that are not dependent on the author's terminology or the title of the book.

Begin by selecting SUBJECT. MARQCAT uses Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). Type a word or phrase that describes the topic. MARQCAT will help identify appropriate subject headings by:

• displaying an alphabetical listing of headings near terms not used as subject headings. Appropriate subject headings may be found by browsing the list. For example, type "heath care crisis" and MARQCAT responds:

• refering from terms not used as subject headings to those that are when there is a direct referral. For example, type "health insurance" and MARQCAT responds:

• suggesting related headings to search. Viewing these suggestions may identify additional subject headings to use. For example, by clicking on the "Insurance Health" link, as indicated in the previous example, MARQCAT responds:

The first entry indicates there are 16 other headings relating to health insurance that may be searched also. Click on the hot link to see a list of the 16 headings.

If you try these tips in the SUBJECT search option and continue to have difficulty finding appropriate subject headings, try the WORDS search option.