Search Strategies - criminal justice
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Transcript of Search Strategies - criminal justice
Search Strategies
Search Strategies
• No matter where you search:
– Library Databases
– The Library Catalog
– The Internet
• Many of these “tricks” will apply.
Keywords• What words will you use to search with?
• Be flexible!
– burglary
– Breaking and entering
– robbery
– Larceny
– Shoplifting, stealing,
stolen goods, thievery
“Spot the pit bull” by audreyjm529, http://www.flickr.com/photos/audreyjm529/201453689/. Creative commons license.
Boolean Searching
Use For
And Narrowing your search & retrieving records containing all words
Or Broaden your search to retrieve any of the words.
Not Narrow search to retrieve records not containing term following it
Slide show creator: Abigail Colucci, University of Calgary Library,
via SlideShare (http://www.slideshare.net/AbbeyWrites/boolean-
searching-3310937?from=share_email)
Boolean Searching
AND = All results about prisons AND sex offenders
OR = Results on either prisons or sex offenders (not necessarily both)
Not = Results on prisons, but not if it includes info about sex offenders.
Prisons Sex
offenders
Prisons Sex
offenders
Prisons Sex
offenders
A sample search screen:
The article must include one of these words:Prisons – jail – corrections
It also must include one of these words/phrases:Sex offenders – rapists
But if “Christopher Smith” is mentioned, then those articles should not be included!
More Search Tips
Phrases
• Are you looking for words appearing together?
– Put the words “in quotes” to find that exact phrase!
• For example: early release versus “early release”
Look for Limiting Options
The Catalog…
Other library databases…
And even with web search engines like Google!
Truncation/Wildcard Symbols
Example: psych*
• Psychiatric
• Psychological
• Psychologists
• Psychotic…
Use symbols to search for various forms of a word. (Symbols may be different in different databases!)
Example: wom?n
• woman
• women
Limit your Fields
• Limit where you are searching if you need to narrow or increase your results.
Look for a Subject Guide or Thesaurus
Frustration?
• Not happy with your results?
• Think about what kind of information you expect to find.
• Be more flexible or broad if not seeing things
• Be more specific if you’re getting too much
Originality!
The good news: Congratulations, you have a clever and interesting topic that nobody has thought of.
The bad news: Nobody has thought of it, yet, so there are no articles about your exact topic!
What to do: Find related information, things that you can use to draw your own conclusions.