Classification from the User’s Viewpoint: Concerning the Arrangement of Collections in University Libraries

As the use of the most common classification systems for the arrangement of library material gives rise to evident problems both in terms of efficiency and user-friendliness, the paper proposes to limit them to the bibliographic description of documents and to make reference to different classification structures specifically aimed at meeting the needs of the physical organization and local access to documents. A possible solution can be the Scientific-Disciplinary Sectors which are the principal structural references both for research and teaching activities. Such a classification, of a purely institutional type, certainly reflects the present-day university situation rather than abstract models, but at the same time it defines more concrete approaches to knowledge. Furthermore, it can be profitably used to correlate people involved in different ways in the university’s institutional activities with the bibliographic material functional to such activities, thus offering a useful parameter in appraising collections.