Dewey Decimal Call Numbers and Serendipitous Browsing

An easy way to find more resources about the same topic is to look at those located near an item you have already found on a library shelf. If you look at books next to each other on the library shelves, the call number range will be either the same or very similar.

The JCU Library collection is shelved according to the Dewey Decimal Classification System:

000 – General works, Computer science and Information
100 – Philosophy and psychology
200 – Religion
300 – Social sciences
400 – Language
500 – Pure Science
600 – Technology
700 – Arts & recreation
800 – Literature
900 – History & geography

What does this mean for the average library user?

Serendipitous browsing....

As Massis (2011) describes "...serendipitous browsing remains today, an integral practice among ... researchers who frequently report having discovered important secondary titles on the shelves adjacent to those they were originally seeking" (p.180).


For further assistance ask at the InfoHelp Desk at either Cairns or Townsville and a library staff member will explain the joy of browsing.

Comments