So, you have selected a research topic and it is time to start collecting resources that are relevant to your research. Taking time to develop an intentional search strategy will help you locate resources efficiently.
To do this, we use information search strategies like Boolean operators, nesting, truncation, and phrase searching.
Here is an example:
The Search Strategy Builder is a tool designed to teach you how to create a search string using Boolean logic. While it is not a database and is not designed to input a search, you should be able to cut and paste the results into most databases’ search boxes.
Now copy and paste the above Search Strategy into a database search box.
The Search Strategy Builder was developed by the University of Arizona Libraries(CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US), and shared by Mandy Swygart-Hobaugh.
The following steps outline a simple and effective strategy for finding information for your research paper and documenting the sources you find. Depending on your topic and your familiarity with the library, you may need to rearrange or recycle these steps. Adapt this outline to your needs.
EBSCOhost Databases Examples: |
For more information, see EBSCO Help's Creating a Search Alert tutorial.
ProQuest Databases Examples: |
For more information, see ProQuest Support Center's Create a Search Alert instructions.
For more information, see PubMed's How Can I Get an Alert? instructions.
JournalTOCs is a free service that makes it easy to find, display and store Tables of Contents from scholarly journals in all disciplines from over a thousand publishers. You can also import them into your Google Feed Reader or Microsoft Outlook RSS Feed Reader.
1. In the search box on the JournalTOCs home page, search for your journal title.
2. From the results that appear underneath the search box, select your journal title.
3. From there, you can choose how you want to follow or subscribe to the journal's information: