Develop
Search Strategy
Sections:
1) Introduction
2) What
is Research?
3) Choosing a Topic
4) Determine Sources of Information
5) Develop Search Strategy
Step 5: Choose appropriate
access tools, develop a search strategy for each tool, and conduct a
systematic, planned search using each tool
Once you've determined
what kind of information you need and what types of sources might provide
that information, you need to choose the right access tool, plan a strategy
for using that access tool, and conduct a search for information. (Remember
our definition of access tool: a print or computerized
"finding aid" that leads you to various kinds of information. For example,
online catalogs (OPAC's) and periodical indexes are access tools you
will use later in the course.)
It is crucial to remember at
this stage that the access tool(s) you decide to use depends on the
type and level of information you're seeking. In other words, the tool
must be able to access (or at least describe in the form of a bibliographic
citation) the information you need. If, for example, you're looking
for an in-depth overview of 20th century Chinese history, one type of
information source you need is a book. The access tool to find books
is the OPAC, not an index or abstract. On the other hand, if
you were seeking the results of the most recent national elections in
China, a periodical index or the Internet would be the most helpful
access tool.
Once you've chosen a tool, you
must develop a search strategy for using it. A search
strategy is a specific plan for how you'll conduct an efficient and
effective search so that you uncover the most relevant information that
a particular access tool can provide on your topic. Taking the time
to plan a search strategy adds precision to your search and saves you
lots of time because a carefully crafted search helps you avoid the
frustration of wading through long lists of irrelevant citations. Listed
below are the main steps to follow when developing a search strategy
for any given access tool. You will learn more about each of these steps
as you progress through the course:
Steps for Developing
a Search Strategy:
1) Divide your research
question into concepts (main ideas).
2) Identify synonymous
or related terms for each concept.
3) Combine terms using
Boolean logic (AND, OR).
4) Conduct a search of
the database in the keyword mode.
5) Consider field searching,
truncation, and proximity operators if the access tool provides these
features.
Step 6: Evaluate the citations
your search found and select only the most relevant to your topic
Now that you have conducted
a search using appropriate access tools, you will be presented with
a list of citations (sometimes called references, entries, records,
or hits) that describe books, articles, or other sources of information.
At this point, it is extremely important that you evaluate these
citations for relevancy and quality. Even though you may have conducted
a carefully planned search, you are still very likely to encounter "false
drops" (irrelevant citations) in your search results list. The
fact that a citation contains your search term(s) does not guarantee
its relevancy to your topic and it would be a mistake to print or write
down every citation that appears. It is crucial that you take the initiative
and exercise your critical thinking and evaluation skills in a significant
way at this point in the research process because computers do not
make research decisions, you do (List 114).
Listed below are three important
parts of a citation that you should closely examine. Citations often
contain "clues" that help you decide if the entire item is of sufficient
quality and relevance to track down and read in its entirety:
1) Title: Read the entire
title, especially the subtitle if there is one, and look for key words
and phrases that indicates relevance to your topic.
2) Abstract: Computerized
indexes sometime include brief abstracts (summaries) of
the item described. Reading the abstract will help you decide if the
item is relevant to your topic.
3) Author: Is this an author
that you have come across before in your reading, i.e. in an encyclopedia
article, review article, or bibliography? Is this author discussed,
referred to, or cited often by other scholars and writers? If so, you
can almost always be certain that person is important in the field you're
researching.
Step 7: Read, take
notes, and evaluate the sources selected as relevant in Stage 6
You are now at the point
where you are reading and taking notes from the relevant sources you
chose in Stage 6. When taking notes it is important that you use your
own words and phrases to summarize and paraphrase what you read. If
you borrow the language of your source too closely, or don't give credit
to a source either through quotation marks or proper documentation,
you are guilty of plagiarism. If you are uncertain about the process
of notetaking and avoiding plagiarism, consult one of
the many research guides in Skyline's library, such as The Brief
English Handbook by Edward Dornan and Charles Dawe.
Step 8: Revise, refine, and
repeat stages 1-7 as needed
As noted at the start
of this discussion, this model of the research process is flexible and
allows you to react to what happens along the way and respond accordingly.
If, for example, your search result list in Stage 5 is hundreds or thousands
of records long, you have found too much information and may have to
narrow the focus of your topic (Stage 3) or conduct a more precise search,
perhaps with different terms. Conversely, if your search uncovers too
little information, you may have to broaden its scope. Remember, as
you go through this research process you are continually evaluating
what's happening in terms of your overall purpose -- finding information
that meets your needs. If your research goals are not being met, you
have the freedom to make the necessary corrections or adjustments at
any stage of the process.
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