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Library Database Search Strategies

Library Database Search Strategies

Instructional Guide Student Finding Resources
  1. Find relevant keywords.

    The nouns in your research question make good keywords for your searches. It is also helpful to think about synonyms for these words that can make them broader or narrower.

    Example

    Research question: What effect does listening to music have on the well-being of undergraduates?

    The bolded nouns "music," "well-being," and "undergraduates" will be good keywords for a search. Synonyms for them include songs, mental health, and college students.

  2. Make a search string.

    Connect keywords with AND, OR, or NOT. These words are called "Boolean operators" and have very specific uses for database searches.

    AND

    Returns results that contain both keywords.

    Example: music AND mental health

    OR

    Returns results that contain either keyword.

    Example: undergraduate OR college student

    NOT

    Excludes the word following NOT.

    Example: Virginia NOT West Virginia

  3. Keep trying!

    Try different combinations of your keywords and their synonyms. You can also review the database entries and the abstracts of relevant articles to identify additional keywords.

    Tip: Sometimes databases will provide other keywords automatically after typing in the search bar. These might help create a better search.

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

This tutorial by The Teaching & Learning Team is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.