n.the process of identifying which records to retain because of their enduring valueJenkinson 1937, 151We have suggested that much might be done by what is, in effect, a reversion to an old procedure; i. e. by making the Administrator the sole agent for the selection and destruction of his own documents: only we have to make sure that he destroys enough.Brooks 1940, 221The selection of records for preservation and the consequent choice of those to be disposed of are the obverse and converse of the same problem and cannot properly be separated.Brichford 1977, 2Records appraisal is best considered as a process that requires extensive staff preparation, a thorough analysis of the origin and characteristics of record series, a knowledge of techniques for the segregation and selection of records, an awareness of the development of research methodologies and needs, and a sequential consideration of administrative, research, and archival values.Ham 1993, 2Archival selection is a process by which archivists identify, appraise, and accession records of enduring value that fulfill their institution’s legal mandate or other acquisition goals.Boles 2005, 25Archival selection, declared Duranti, was about identifying records that documented the responsibilities and the actions of the creator, usually a governmental official, and that were embedded in documents that were of evidential value in the legal sense of the word.Boles 2005, 111Rarely do archivists document how the selection decision is made. Despite the critical nature of selection, archivists seldom leave written descriptions of how and why a particular set of records was accepted or rejected.Jimerson 2011, 373In recent years an increasing number of archivists have responded to studies of social memory and of postmodernism by recognizing much more consciously and vocally that their role in selection and acquisition does shape the documentary record.Robyns 2014, xviThrough the act of appraisal and selection, therefore, the archivist directly and consciously contributes to the nature of society.
