Search Strategies

Before you begin an online search, you should develop a search strategy. Specifically, you should carefully select search terms, or keywords, to conduct your search. The search terms you use will have a dramatic effect on the outcome of your research, especially when you use the computer to search for information. You must make sure that spelling is correct. Besides spelling, there are other issues involved in choosing appropriate search terms. Here are some guidelines you might want to take into consideration:

Identify the main concept in your topic

Some topics can be rather complex, and it is important to identify the main concept. This would be the most important word or phrase to choose as your primary search term. For instance, lets say your topic is:

"Discuss the effect of tropical storms in Florida in 1993"

Searching for materials on Florida or 1993 might lead you down the wrong path. Tropical storms is clearly the main concept of this topic, even though there are other aspects involved. Therefore, you should conduct your research with tropical storms as the primary focus.

Identify secondary concepts in your topic

The complex topic introduced in the previous paragraph has several secondary concepts. Identifying the main concept is of primary importance, but identifying secondary concepts can be useful. For instance, suppose your search on tropical storms returned too many items. You may then add secondary concepts such as Florida or 1993 to make your results list more manageable, and make your search more focused.

Identify synonyms for your topic

Keep in mind that there may be other terms or phrases that are synonyms for your topic, and that some search systems will only understand one of these terms or phrases. Some examples might include doctors and physicians; Blacks and African-Americans; or, companies, corporations, and enterprises.

Identify terms related to your topic

Keep in mind that some terms may be closely related to your topic even if they are not exact synonyms. You may find information on your topic when exploring related topics. Some examples might include AIDS and HIV; domestic violence and battered women; or, politics and government.

Also see:
- Outline of the Research Process (Utah Acad. Lib. Consortium)
- Enhancing Search Statements (Utah Acad. Lib. Consortium)
- Boolean Operators (and, or, not) (California St. Univ. system)