ERIC Number: ED027908
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1967-Aug-31
Pages: 71
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Study of Document Representations--Multidimensional Scaling of Indexing Terms. Final Report.
Katter, Robert V.
The investigation is part of a continuing project to find better means for studying and evaluating document representations (e.g., abstracts, indexes). The present study focused on understanding the ways individuals interpret index terms, with the goal of using the findings in improving indexing systems. Indexing systems use all-or-none bases for matching descriptors from documents with descriptors from information requests. Humans, in judging the similarity of meaning between different descriptors, can respond in terms of degrees of similarity. There appears to be more discrimination power available in the human judgments than in the all-or-none matching arrangements. The question is, if data on human judgments of similarity between indexing terms were available to a machine searching system, would search accuracy be improved over present levels. Conclusions were that incorporation of such similarity relations into mechanical index-term matching procedures would indeed increase search accuracy, and that the procedures used in the study can be adapted to such use. (Author)
Descriptors: Classification, Correlation, Documentation, Evaluation, Indexes, Indexing, Information Retrieval, Use Studies
Clearinghouse for Federal Scientific & Technical Information, Springfield, Va. 22151 (PB 175 960, MF $0.65, HC $3.00).
Publication Type: N/A
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: N/A
Sponsor: National Science Foundation, Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: System Development Corp., Santa Monica, CA.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A