Spotlight on Inclusive Subject Headings & Journals: Atla’s Participation in The Library of Congress Demographic Group Terms (LCDGT) Project (Part 4)

In previous blog posts in our “Spotlight On” series, we discussed how Atla has updated topical authorities with the goal of making them more inclusive. This month, Jill Annitto, Atla’s Head of Metadata and Editorial Operations, spoke with Todd Aiello, Atla Product Specialist, about her participation in The Library of Congress Demographic Group Terms (LCDGT) project.

The Library of Congress began the Demographic Group Terms project as a pilot program in 2014 with the goal of developing subject headings to represent characteristics (such as language, occupation, and nationality) of both the intended audience of their resources as well as that of the creators and contributors of those resources. Nine categories of demographics were determined: age, educational level, ethnicity/culture, language, medical/psychological/disability, national/regional, occupation, religion, and social group. For various reasons, the program was on hiatus from 2018 to 2021.  

When the Library of Congress reestablished the LCDGT in 2021, it sought to enlist the help of subject matter experts on each demographic category within the project. Veronica Ranieri, Cataloging Policy Specialist for the Library, reached out to Atla to provide a subject matter expert in the category of religion. In 2021, Jill joined representatives from eight other organizations to form the LCDGT Advisory Group. 

The group spent its first year working through the backlog of 500 proposals on vocabulary additions and changes that the project had accumulated. Every month, group members receive a list of prioritized changes for review. Each member independently marks their recommendation. The group meets virtually to discuss the proposed changes and make their final recommendations. While each group member has been chosen for their expertise in one or more categories, the group works collaboratively on each proposal. Following this process, the group has completed a review of the backlog. As of 2022, the group has welcomed new proposed changes. 

Jill describes the work of the Advisory Group as collegial, enthusiastic, and efficient. Because each demographic category is represented by at least one expert within the group, approvals can be made confidently; more complicated and nuanced proposed changes are researched in greater depth before the group accepts or denies the change. The expertise that Jill can draw on from her colleagues at Atla informs her recommendations on concepts within the religion and theology space. In parallel, the Atla Metadata Team is reviewing and updating topical authorities to more accurately reflect demographic groups in the interests of inclusivity and discoverability. Jill reports that her work with the Advisory Group has helped inform our changes, providing authority and expertise to validate and supplement our own choices. 

Atla is humbled to have played a part in modernizing the Library of Congress’s topical authorities. We consider this a vital service and are pleased that the changes have been received positively. The group’s work continues, receiving new proposals each month. We welcome the opportunity to contribute our expertise in the fields of religion and theology and are excited to continue to do our part in making research more accessible, discoverable, and accurate. 

We will continue in our efforts to improve the inclusivity and diversity of our research tools, and we welcome any suggestions that will assist us in this initiative.

We also invite you to suggest content (including journal titles and essay collections) for inclusion in our research tools. For more information on how content is evaluated and to learn how to recommend a title for inclusion in Atla’s research tools: https://www.atla.com/for-publishers/evaluation-rdb/