A Study and Comparison of Anglo-American Cataloging Rules and the Functional Requirements forBibliographic Records Model of the National Library of Iran and Proposing Solutions for Improving it

The present research aimed to study and compare the capabilities of the Anglo-American CatalogingRules (AACR) and the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) model for fulfililng the aims and functions required by library catalogues and to determine the pros and cons of each model. In this research, which was carried out as a comparative survey, the two models are assessed through checklists developed by the researchers. The checklists were filled in using existing texts and documents and searching in the United States’ National Union Catalogue and WorldCat which were chosen as examples. Furthermore, the data obtained from the research checklist was analytically and comparatively analyzed. Research findings show that in terms of aims and functions of catalogues, the basis for description in bibliographic records, the structure of bibliographic records, the determination of functions of existing data elements in bibliographic records and the level and method of describing documents in bibliographic records, the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records model is more complete than AACR and is able to meet the information needs of library catalogue users more effectively. Among the deficiencies of the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records model in comparison with AACR the following may be mentioned: less international popularity, lack of instructing librarians and cataloguers, lack of familiarity of catalogue users with this model, special.software requirements and cataloguing costsZAHIR.