Impact of Authority Data on Search in the German Digital Library: A Glimpse at the Cataloguing Praxis in Museums

Cataloguing information in museums is often described as unsatisfactory in a generalized way – be it in cross-sector comparison, or in reference to the specific requirements of data exchange. Consequently, museum data may deliver unsatisfactory search results in the German Digital Library, thereby hamper explorative searches in this portal. In addition, the heterogeneity of museum objects, museum data and the cataloguing practice might have a negative effect on the value pool of certain search filters. This means, at least for museum objects, that those filters cannot be used as intended, which significantly impairs faceted searching in the portal. This study attempts to identify how certain museum cataloguing habits affect searching and, in particular, the usability of the respective filters in the German Digital Library. At the same time, it will be determined how certain insufficiencies of searching in the portal are related to the lack of authority data or their use in museum cataloguing.