Database Searching Tips
Identifying Keywords
- Choose key words related to your topic for search terms
- Do not use little words like "a," "an,", "the."
- Use nouns, or verbs that answer "W" questions about your topic.
Who 
What Where When Why How Creating a Search Statement
- Use Boolean logic to connect search terms.
- Most databases assume "and" between words.
- Finds articles with both words.
- Finds fewer items.
- Use for similar concepts.
- (girl or women or female)
- Put in parentheses ( ).
- Finds articles with either word.
- Finds more items.
- Excludes a word.
- Use last.
- Be very cautious.
- Put a "*" or a wildcard character at the end of a word to find plurals and verb forms.
- teen* will find (teen or teens or teenager or teenagers)
- eat* will find (eat or eats or eating)
- Put word phrases in quotation marks "...".
- Use the Advanced Search feature.
Research Process
- Choose your topic.
- Create a search strategy.
- Choose keywords
- Choose appropriate tool (database)
- Search.
- Evaluate.
- Revise, search again, evaluate.
- Use the information.
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