Overview

Form/Genre headings (MARC 21 field 655) provide library patrons and librarians with a systematic method of identifying specific types of materials described in the HOLLIS Catalog.

The Metadata Standards Working Group recommends the use of controlled vocabularies for these fields whenever possible.

Guidelines

Use 655 _ 7 with an authorized form/genre heading in the subfield $$a and the corresponding source indicated in the subfield $$2

The terms for these headings may be found in the list of Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms (LCGFT), the Art and Architecture Thesaurus (AAT), the suite of vocabularies put out by the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section of the American Library Association (RBMS) (see instructions for RBMS vocabularies below), or other authorized thesauri. Harvard Best Practice is to prefer the most commonly used thesauri (LCGFT, AAT, RBMS). A list of vocabularies and their appropriate coding can be found at http://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/genreFormSchemes.html. Some examples that may be worth exploring include the Radio Form/Genre Terms Guide, the OLAC Video Games Genre Terms, and the Newspaper Genre List.

When using a new vocabulary, please be sure to carefully read the documentation, following any requirements for use.

Example: 655 _7 Paper dolls. $$2 lcgft
Do not use terms from the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) in the 655 field with second indicator 0, or in 655 _7 with $$2 lcsh
Although genre terms in the LCSH vocabulary are technically valid in the 655 field, Alma flips these terms to LCGFT terms (if an equivalent term exists), without changing the coding of the field. (It should be noted that Connexion also flips any field encoded 655 _0 to 655 _7 $$2 lcgft, if there is a comparable term, when it is controlled.) Although this does not happen when the term is not present in LCGFT, the ongoing updates to LCGFT mean that there is significant potential for future incorrect flips. For this reason, the Harvard Metadata Standards Working Group strongly cautions against using LCSH terms in the 655 field.
Genre terms formerly used from the LCSH vocabulary should, whenever possible, be adapted to LCGFT faceted terms, separating out the genre term from geographical or other information.
Example:
655 _7 $$a Fiction. $$2 lcgft
008/35-37 ger (and possibly 386__ $$a Germans. $$2 lcdgt)
(DO NOT USE: 655_0 $$a German fiction)
Example:
655_7 $$a Didactic fiction. $$2 lcgft
008/35-37 ger
(DO NOT USE: 655_4 or 655_0 $$a Didactic fiction, German)

NB: If there is an LCSH term which you absolutely must use, please prefer 655 _4 over 653 (this will allow the term to display as a genre term in Primo). However, please consider the statement in LC H 1790 to have broader significance (i.e., for LCSH and LCGFT vocabularies): "Do not include adjectival qualifiers or subdivisions that show the language of the work or that reflect the characteristics of the author, such as nationality, religion, sex, ethnic background."
Avoid using local genre terms when an appropriate term can be found in an authorized thesaurus
Harvard Best Practice is to use a controlled term in all cases, unless a thorough search has turned up no possibilities.
When using local terms, code as 655 _4. Do not follow previous practice of using 655 _7 with $$2 local. (Please note that use of $$2 local is not related to the use of $$5 to identify the holding library, see below.) This change in practice is to better align with OCLC. Work is underway to establish a consistent list of Harvard local subject and genre terms available to the entire Harvard Library community.

Example: 655 _4 $$a Harvard students’ books
Carrier information for media should come from a controlled vocabulary.

For carrier information, particularly of non-print media (i.e., videocassettes, DVDs), we no longer recommend the previous Harvard practice of using local terms (e.g., 655 _7 $$a Videotapes. $$2 local) or LCSH terms (e.g., 655 _0 $$a DVD-Video discs), see above. This information can be recorded in the 33x and 34x fields with the appropriate rda source code, with genre/form headings in the 655 _7 taken from one of the recommended controlled vocabularies.

Examples:
338 __ $$a videocassette $$b vf $$2 rdacarrier
340 __ $$b 1/2 in.
344 __ $$a analog $$2 rdatr
344 __ $$b magnetic $$2 rdarm
346 __ $$a VHS $$2 rdavf
346 __ $$b NTSC $$2 rdabs
655 _7 $$a Videocassettes. $$2 aat

338 __$$a microfilm reel $$b hd $$2 rdacarrier
655_7 $$a Microfilms.$$2 aat
655_7 $$a Stats (copies) $$2 aat
"Electronic books"
On August 16, 2022, OCLC announced that the term “Electronic books” will be removed from 655 in all WorldCat bibliographic records beginning September 2022. Although many institutions have long used the term as LCSH or LCGFT, it is a restatement of the type of carrier of a resource rather than an indication of the form or genre of the content and has never been valid for use. While this term was useful in the early days of eBooks, the implementation of RDA has allowed many metadata elements to provide information to determine if a resource is an electronic book. The announcement presented four scenarios where the term will be removed from all OCLC records:
655_0 $$a Electronic books.
655_7 $$a Electronic books. $$2 lcgft
655_4 $$a Electronic books.
655_7 $$a Electronic books. $$2 local

On September 28, 2022, OCLC updated the announcement that it will begin working on removing additional headings that begin with “Electronic” (both singular and plural forms) as listed below. OCLC staff will be compiling and considering additions to this list for a future project that will commence once these headings are eliminated:
   Electronic article
             Electronic audiobook
             Electronic book
             Electronic dictionary
             Electronic directory
             Electronic dissertation
             Electronic document
             Electronic encyclopedia
             Electronic government information
             Electronic government publication
             Electronic handbook
             Electronic journal
             Electronic manuscript
             Electronic map
             Electronic masters project
             Electronic newsletter
             Electronic newspaper
             Electronic publication
             Electronic score
             Electronic serial
             Electronic student paper
             Electronic text
             Electronic theses
             Electronic thesis
Harvard Library will align its best practices with OCLC, and LTS will begin removing the term “Electronic books” from all bibliographic records in Alma, in addition to removing the term from incoming OCLC records. For repositories wishing to add this term locally in Alma or to OCLC records, MSWG recommends using the term “e-books” from AAT.
Children's, Medical, and Agriculture Genre/Form terms are valid

Genre/Form terms derived from these three subject vocabularies are valid for use in Connexion and Alma, although preference is still for the most commonly used thesauri (LCGFT, AAT, and RBMS). MARC coding for these three vocabularies is by indicator:

655 _1: Library of Congress Annotated Children's Cataloging Program subject heading
655 _2: Medical Subject Headings
655 _3: National Agricultural Library Subject Headings
FAST headings should be retained

Please note that any FAST genre headings (or FAST headings of any kind), should be retained if present in a record, along with all subfields.
Example: 655 _7 $$a Requiems. $$2 fast $$0 (OCoLC)fst01726720
Continue to use $$5 with local library code for terms related to Harvard local copies.
When describing characteristics relating only to Harvard’s local copy, these fields are added in Alma after export/merging from OCLC Connexion, and should have a $$5 to indicate the holding library. Supporting evidence for this local information should be placed in the appropriate 56x field in the holdings, along with the local library’s $$5 code. This information could include evidence of annotations, marginalia, binding, etc. Codes for $5 use can be found here (note that codes should be intered in lower case letters): https://harvardwiki.atlassian.net/wiki/x/2XmVAg

Examples:
655_7 $$a Authors’ annotations $$2 rbmscv $$5 mus
655_4 $$a Manuscripts in books. $$5 hou
This policy relates to prospective cataloging.

Although legacy records may be corrected as they are discovered, catalogers should not seek out these records for correction if this is the only reason for this work.

Common Vocabularies

The most commonly used sources are:

Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms

http://id.loc.gov/authorities/genreForms.html

655_7 $$2 lcgft

Art & architecture thesaurus

http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabularies/aat/

655_7 $$2 aat

Thesaurus for graphic materials: TGM II, Genre and physical characteristic terms

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/tgm/

655_7 $$2 gmgpc

Rare Books and Manuscripts Section Controlled Vocabularies - Updated as of March 2023

The Controlled Vocabulary for Rare Materials Cataloging (RBMS CVRMC) has officially launched in March 2023. RBMS CVRMC is a linked data thesaurus that combines the former RBMS Thesauri (Genre, Binding, Type, Printing and Publishing, Paper, and Provenance) into a single resource with a redesigned structure. It is hosted by the Library of Congress Linked Data Service at https://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/rbmscv.html. The RBMS Relationship Designators have also been migrated to LC LDS and can be found at https://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/rbmsrel.html. When using terms from RBMS CVRMC in a MARC record, the new code is $2 rbmscv. The six former thesauri are now officially deprecated.

Examples:

655_7 $$a Bookplates. $$2 rbmscv

Old/deprecated format: 655_7 $$a Bookplates (Provenance) $$2 rbprov

655_7 $$a Embroidered bindings. $$2 rbmscv

Old/deprecated format: 655_7 $$a Embroidered bindings (Binding) $$z England $$y 17th century. $$2 rbbin

N.B. The RBMS CVRMC does not maintain chronological or geographical subdivision terms, which are deemed outside the scope of this vocabulary. Therefore, terms should not be subdivided. See RBMS CVRMC prefatory materials for details.

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