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Citation Resources
Searching Effectively
Basic Search Tips
Unlike ChatGPT or even Google, databases can't quite understand an entire sentence. You'll need to break your topic down into the most important ideas - the keywords.
Example Topic: How do pesticides like atrazine affect health?
The specifics of your topic will matter when selecting sources, but for searching you only need the most essential components.
Keywords: pesticides, atrazine, health
Most words have synonyms that mean the same, or very similar, things. For each keyword in your topic, try to come up with at least one synonym. Not all keywords will have synonyms, but many do!
Example:
Keep an eye out:
Sometimes scholars use terms that you might not be familiar with, or which might mean something very specific within the discipline. While searching, look for unfamiliar terms or words that show up a lot. Try searching for those and see if you find more relevant sources.
Most library databases have search tools built in. Try some of these:
- Subject: Think of subjects as official hashtags. Use them to find sources about that subject. You can also incorporate the words and phrases used here into your search, as new synonyms.
- Date Range: Limit your search to sources published between specific years.
- Peer Reviewed: Limit your search to scholarly journal articles.
- Full Text: Make sure all of the results are available to read in full.
Look on the left and right of your search results, or for an "advanced search" page to find these tools - and more!
Depending on your topic, you may find it more useful to search for a particular substance instead of a string of keywords. Many tools (like SciFinder, PubChem, etc.) will let you draw a compound and just search for that structure:
You can evaluate any source using the 5 W's:
- Who: ...created it? What is their background with relation to this subject?
- What: ...is the purpose of this resource? What do others have to say about the people behind the resource?
- For example, is it sponsored by a company that has a financial interest in the topic?
- Where: ...was this information published? Where does the information come from?
- When: ...was this published or last updated?
- Why: ...is this resource useful? Why is this resource better than other ones?
Intermediate Search Tips
Use the operator AND to find only sources that mention both keywords.
This search will bring back fewer results than searching either keyword on its own.
Use the OR operator to expand your search with additional keywords.
This will find sources that include either word, so you'll see more results than by searching for just one keyword.
Use the “QUOTES” strategy to search for several words in a phrase.
This will bring back results that only use that exact phrase.
Remember: databases, search engines (like Google and Google Scholar), and even AI tools are built by people. We all have different ways of communicating, even around similar topics. When it comes to searching (or prompting), don't use the exact same search string or same phrasing in each place you look. Often switching up words, phrases, and techniques can help you find different, more relevant results.