Whatever your project, these steps should help you find useful material:
- Formative searching
- Clearly define what you are interested in, so you know what is relevant. What will you rule out?
- Start with what you know. Check your module reading lists for useful texts, then check their index, chapter headings, and references for useful information.
- Try a variety of search terms in Discover. Narrow and widen your search. See which approach produces the most effective results.
- Develop your search strategy
- Your searching should be systematic, so it does not miss any useful information.
- Also search for alternative terms for your topic. Look at the keywords in articles for further ideas, and to see how previous researchers have described your subject.
- The other tabs (above) will give you ideas on where to look for information. It is a good idea to use more than just Discover or Google Scholar.
- Many search tools also have Advanced Search options for more precise work. Options include result filters, Boolean operators, and using quotation marks to look for exact phrases.
- Follow the trails...
- Once you have found useful material, you can follow trails to more useful material.
- Look up relevant references, check what else an author has written, or use a citation tracker (like the tools in Scopus or Google Scholar) to see who has cited the work more recently.
- Then follow the trails from these sources as well.
Ultimately, searching is not a linear process. The more you read, the more keywords, authors, topics, and questions you will encounter. This reflects your growing knowledge of the topic, and will help you adapt your search terms.
Remember to keep a note of your searching, so that you can repeat it if necessary, and also get due credit for it.
