- Use keywords or brief (2-word) phrases instead of sentences -- one or two for each part of your topic.
- Use concepts and other nouns as your keywords. Think of words that are likely to be used in titles (or that you have seen in titles).
- If your keywords aren't turning up many results, you may need to:
No piece of research stands alone; each is part of a broader scholarly conversation in that topic/ field. You can use a single article or other resource to find other, similar research by tracing the paths of that conversation:
Keywords – Check the abstract, subject terms and full-text to discover the vocabulary being used in this particular scholarly conversation.
Subject Terms – Subject terms not only provide insight into vocabulary you should use but also serve as search tools – click on these tags in any database (or the catalog) to find more resources on a given topic.
Cited References – Check the references list (or bibliography) to see what previous research this resource is drawing on. From here, you may wish to consider:
- Previous articles or books published on your topic
- Other authors who have published on your topic
- Journals where your topic is frequently discussed
Times Cited – Check Google Scholar to see which articles or books have cited your sources, and to find more-recent research which builds on your original information.
** Once you find a new resource, you can also trace the scholarly conversation around that book/article to find even more resources!
For a simpler, graphic representation of this research strategy, download the handout below: