Keywords are the terms that you type into the search box in a library database. They are the essential terms for your idea, the most important words describing your topic.
Before you can begin searching for information in a resource, you need to identify keywords related to your topic.
Key terminology can be be found by scanning:
Use subject terms assigned to works in library catalogs or research databases.
Once you have identified keywords, use the following techniques to build search strings for searching in library catalogs, databases, and search engines to quickly find more relevant sources to use in your research:
Boolean Operators | Search Modifiers |
AND combines different ideas or concepts, narrowing the search. Example: social media AND surveillance Results will contain both the words social media and surveillance |
Phrase Searching allows adjacent words to be kept together. Example: “genetic engineering” Results will contain words genetic and engineering together as an exact phrase. |
OR is used when adding synonyms, different spellings, similar concepts, etc., increasing the number of results Example: global warming OR climate change Results will contain one or more of the words global warming or climate change |
Truncation broadens search to include various word endings and spellings. Example: technolog* Results will contain terms that begin with technolog, e.g., technology, technologies, technological |
NOT excludes terms to make the search more specific, reducing the number of results. Example: blockchain NOT crypto Results will not contain the word crypto |
Nesting utilizes parentheses to control the logical order in which words are interpreted by the system. Example:(virtual OR augmented) AND reality Results will include the word reality and either or both the words virtual and augmented |
You can search multiple databases at once. In an EBSCO database (as shown above), click Choose Databases to select resources that may be relevant to your research. NOTE that the image above is simply a picture and does not have search functionality.
Some databases you may want to search simultaneously are: Academic Search Complete, APA PsycInfo, Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text, Legal Collection, National Criminal Justice Reference Service Abstracts, Political Science Complete, and/or SocINDEX