Control and Syntagmatization: Vocabulary Requirements in Information Retrieval Thesauri and Natural Language Lexicons

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelfagfællebedømt

This paper explores the relationships between natural language lexicons in lexical semantics and thesauri in information retrieval research. These different areas of knowledge have different restrictions on use of vocabulary; thesauri are used only in information search and retrieval contexts, whereas lexicons are mental systems and generally applicable in all domains of life. A set of vocabulary requirements which defines the more concrete characteristics of vocabulary items in the two contexts can be derived from this framework: lexicon items have to be learnable, complex, transparent etc., whereas thesaurus terms must be effective, current and relevant, searchable etc. The differences in vocabulary properties correlate with two other factors, the well-known dimension of Control (deliberate, social activities of building and maintaining vocabularies), and Syntagmatization, which is less known and describes vocabulary items’ varying formal preparedness to exit the thesaurus/lexicon, enter into linear syntactic constructions and, finally, acquire communicative functionality. It is proposed that there is an inverse relationship between Control and Syntagmatization.
OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftJournal of the Association for Information Science and Technology
Vol/bind68
Udgave nummer6
Sider (fra-til)1480-1490
Antal sider11
ISSN2330-1643
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 27 feb. 2017

ID: 163860587