THE INITIAL PROBLEM
Leland G. Alkire · The Serials Librarian · 1978
The abbreviated periodical citation is seen as a major bibliographic obstacle which is part of a larger trend in our society to substitute initials for words. Bibliographers and indexers often employ "homegrown" abbreviations which conflict with existing abbreviations from other sources. In some quarters, a standard for abbreviating periodicals has gained acceptance, but there remains a wilderness of conflicting and overlapping practices. Several dictionaries haue emerged that attempt to record and translate such variations, but the final answer will come only with the universal acceptance of the existing standards or with the abandonment of periodical abbreviations entirely.