Finding sources for your assignment can take time! Be sure to give yourself lots of time to thoroughly search and choose the best sources for your assignment.
Start by brainstorming:
Pay attention to the results:
Modify your search strategy and search terms as needed.
Reflect on your search:
Be sure to Chat with Us if you are still struggling to find sources for your assignment.
The most common search operators are: AND, OR, and NOT. Watch How to Use AND & OR to Search (2:51).
AND |
risk factors AND smoking AND teen
|
---|---|
OR |
(teen OR adolescent OR youth)
|
NOT |
smoking NOT marijuana
|
Sometimes, you may find that your search produced TOO FEW results. To expand your search:
Or, try one of these search tools:
|
teen* - finds teen, teens, teenage, teenager, teenagers
|
---|---|
? |
wom?n - finds woman, women
|
Sometimes, you may find that your search produced TOO MANY unhelpful results. To narrow your search:
Or, try one of these search tools:
|
"risk factors"
Watch Tips and Tricks: Phrase Searching (1:00) |
---|---|
Filters |
Find only those documents or records with specific attributes. Common filters include:
|
Field Searching |
Search for a keyword within a specific field in the database records. Common fields include: Title, Author, Subject, Publisher, Publication, Publication date.
Watch Refining your Search with Fields (1:22) |
Practice using these search tools in context.
Chat with Us if you have any questions about your search strategy.