Search Strategies
If you're having trouble finding what you are looking for, you need to
identify the source of the problem. There are three elements to any
search: what you're looking for, the
place you're looking, and the way you're looking.
If you're stuck, evaluate what you've done, looking at all three factors.
What You're Looking For
Do you have a clear notion of the information you want? And the reason
you want it? Many searches get detrailed because writers don't formulate
them well in the first place. If you can't explain what you're looking
for, you may need to do some more work refining your interest. Check with
your teacher or a librarian for some suggestions.
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The Right Index
First off, consider the index you're using. Each index has a
particular focus, although some (such as the National Newspaper Index or
Lexis/Nexis) are much more general than others (such as the Biological and
Agricultaral Index). Ask yourself questions like
- what is this index focused on?
- does this index have sub-parts (like Lexis/Nexis does)? Am I using the
right sub-part?
- is the focus of this index relevant to my search topic?
- are there other indexes I might check?
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or jump to
information
about article indexes
The Right Search Term
Be flexible with your search terms. In most indexes, it is helpful
if you
use AND, OR, or NOT to expand or limit your search. In most indexes, too,
you can use quotation marks to keep a phrase together in the search
results. If you search for death penalty, without quotation marks, some
databases would return an article that had the sentence "The penalty for
that crime in Ancient Greece was death," because both your search terms
appear in it.
As an example, when I was preparing this page I tried out the Academic
Index and searched for death penalty church. I got back one article,
about questions that would be posed to Ruth Bader Ginsburg when she was
nominated to the Supremem Court (since should would be asked about her
opinions on the death penalty, church/state separation, and other
matters--note how death penalty church occur in that sentence). When I
tried the search again using "death penalty" and church, I got back many
more useful citations.
If one search term doesn't work, try a synonym. Ask a reference
librarian
for help, or bring your question up in class. Experiment, and note what
you're doing.
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Page constructed by Susanmarie Harrington, Fall 1998
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