Author-generated Dublin Core Metadata for Web Resources: A Baseline Study in an Organization

TLDR

The study investigates whether resource authors can produce acceptable Dublin Core metadata within an organization. Authors used a simple web form with textual guidance and selective UI features to create metadata. Authors were able to generate high‑quality Dublin Core metadata, sometimes surpassing professionals, and the web form facilitated this process, underscoring the value of author involvement in metadata creation.

Abstract

This paper reports on a study that examined the ability of resource authors to create acceptable metadata in an organizational setting. The results indicate that authors can create good quality metadata when working with the Dublin Core, and that is in some cases they may be able to create metadata that is of better quality than what a metadata professional can produce. This research suggests that authors think metadata is valuable for resource discovery, that it should be created for web resources, and that they, as authors, should be involved in metadata production for their works. The study also indicates that a simple web form, with textual guidance and selective use of features (e.g., popup windows, drop-down menus, etc.) can assist authors in generating good quality metadata.