PCC Full-Level Bibliographic Standards

From the PCC perspective a Full-level bibliographic record potentially contains more detail than a core-level record. The specification for a Full-level record subsumes the data elements specified for PCC Core records. A Full-level record, in general, reflects the following characteristics:

1) the description is based on the current versions of the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, 2nd ed., at either the second or third levels of description (rules 1.0D2 and 1.0D3 respectively), the Library of Congress Rule Interpretations, the CONSER Editing Guide, the CONSER Cataloging Manual, and the ALA-LC Romanization Tables;

2) access includes the following (all relevant descriptive and subject access is in an authorized form supported by appropriate authority work):

a) for monographs, classification parallels the counterpart core standards (for books, printed/manuscript music, and cartographic materials, classification based on one of the classification schemes recognized by the MARC 21 Format for Bibliographic Data; for other materials, classification is not required); for serials, classification is encouraged but is not required;

b) subject and/or form access based on one (or a combination) of the subject heading systems, thesauri, or genre/form lists recognized by the MARC 21 Format for Bibliographic Data, as appropriate; in general, such access is provided for all the subject aspects constituting twenty per cent or more of the content;
c) added entries reflecting the full complement of access called for by the cataloging rules and PCC policy;

3) the record is in machine-readable form and reflects the structure and content designation of the MARC 21 Format for Bibliographic Data; it also reflects the content designation of the MARC 21 Format for Authority Data where applicable as well as the conventions of the following associated MARC 21 documentation:

MARC Code List for Countries
MARC Code List for Geographic Areas
MARC Code List for Languages
MARC Code Lists for Relators, Sources, Description Conventions
MARC 21 Specifications for Record Structure, Character Sets, and Exchange
Media

Unlike PCC Core, there is no conscious attempt to place limitations either on description or access. Note that the application of the Full record specification to a particular resource will not necessarily result in a totally consistent and uniform set of data elements. The following factors preclude the expectation of such uniform treatment from agency to agency:

the nature and character of a particular cataloging universe;
cataloger's judgment;
conditions that permit discretionary variations at the individual agency level, e.g., various aspects of series treatment;
the requirements of a particular bibliographic utility;
the requirements of a particular agency.

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February 27, 2009