Is It Worth It? Management Issues Related to Database Quality

Management issues related to the quality of a library’s catalog and its source databases reflect the continual evolution of both. As catalogs seem about to mutate rather than to continue to evolve gradually, a review of how management thought about database quality was developed may assist libraries to recognize which principles and circumstances remain valid and true, to assess which are no longer applicable, and to decide what actions to take. A persistent shortcoming in the decision- making process that needs to be addressed is the lack of serious research into user needs and benefits, and the actual impact on users of database quality decisions