Keywords
Keywords are the words that most accurately describe the topic you want. As you search, look in the records you find for additional or more exact keywords or phrases to use.
Synonyms
Think about different words an author might have used.
AND, OR, NOT, Quotes and Astericks
Use these special words ("operators") to connect your keywords --
AND -results must include both words.
OR -results can contain either of the words. Use to link synonyms
NOT -results include one word and not the other.
Quotes - (in most databases) the quoted words must appear together.
Asterick - (in most databases) look for all variations after the *.
Limit your Search
Depending on the database, this could be searching by Title, Author or Publication Date. Also look for "Descriptors" or "Subject terms" assigned to good articles, then search by those terms.
Ask a Librarian
Talk to the librarian at the reference desk for more tips!!
These are just three of many, many databases you can choose from:
Content: Business research database covering economic conditions, management techniques, theory, and practice of business, advertising, marketing, economics, human resources, finance, taxation, computers, and more.
Purpose: This is a key database for business and leadership students.
Special Features: Country and market reports, SWOT analysis functionality, browsable by topic pathway.
This multi-disciplinary, full-text database is designed specifically for academic institutions. This collection of 3,865 full-text, scholarly publications provides journal coverage for nearly all academic areas of study - including social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, physics, chemistry, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies.
AP Top News, WorldStream, Financial News, AP Online, U.S. Politics & Government and 50 State Reports.
Content: A reference database useful for accessing scholarly definitions, background and contextual information. Subjects covered include art, biography, business, economics, education, history, literature, music, psychology, religion, and science and technology.
Purpose: An excellent starting point for brainstorming a research topic and building out your initial search terms list.
Special Features: Mindmap; related articles; image search
