Searching the Literature planning a search using information resources effectively Psychology...
-
Upload
branden-walsh -
Category
Documents
-
view
213 -
download
0
Transcript of Searching the Literature planning a search using information resources effectively Psychology...
Searching the Literatureplanning a search
using information resources effectively
Psychology (Applied)
Heather RobbAcademic Liaison Librarian
October 2014
Outline
• planning a search• where to look• finding answers
• presentation• practical• workbook
Gathering information
• 1 – definitions• 2 – search strategy• 3 – choose resources• 4 – begin searches• 5 – refine searches• 6 – note the sources of
information used
What am I looking for?
Planning is the key:• look carefully at your topic • break it down into concepts or themes e.g.
“how can we assess the perception of another person’s gaze”?
assess perception gaze
How to put concepts together
AND
perception AND gaze
OR
looking OR gaze
Boolean operators
Boolean operators
• use the Boolean operators to help you express your search logically e.g.
assess perception gaze
AND AND
Synonyms and spellings
• think about other terms which mean the same i.e. synonyms, or related terms
• remember alternative spellings e.g. US vs British
assess perception gaze
test awareness looking
AND
OROR
AND
Widening a search
Other options with keyword searching:
• use truncation to pick up plurals or other word endings – e.g. assess* = assessment, assessing
• use wildcards to pick up spelling variants– e.g. behavio?r = behavior, behaviour
• use adjaceny for words appearing in the same sentence– e.g. nature NEAR/4 nuture = nature nurture, nature
versus nurture, nurture as opposed to nature,...
Widening a search
AND
OROR
ANDassess* perception gaze
test* aware* looking
experiment* conscious* stare
Limiting a search
• Can you make your search more specific?• For example:
– English language– type of publication (review articles?)– type of population (human? animal?) – date of publication (last 5 years?)
Have a go...• in pairs plan this search using the simple grid
structure• break the question down into key
terms/concepts• think of synonyms, alternative spelling and
plurals• decide which Boolean operators are required
• What part do genes play in human intelligence?
human intellig* genes
OR OR ORhomo sapiens intellect* gene
OR ORIQ genetic*
ORgenom*
AND AND
Selecting your resource(s)• what kind of information do you want?• which “finding aids” cover this type of
information? e.g.–Library Catalogue for books or
Discover for books, journal articles, theses, images, and more
–databases e.g. PsycInfo/ PsycArticles or Web of Science for journal articles
–Nexis UK or Factiva for newspaper articles
Psychology Subject Page
Tips• Access via the Library website not via DUO• Use Title field to focus a keyword search• Use limit options to refine your search • Use ConneXions to check for full-text online
– also check Library catalogue link – for print options and alternative links
• Google an article title in quotes (“”) if not found via ConneXions to check for free full-text
• Use Library’s DDS not “pay-per-view” options
Practical
• open Library homepage• choose:
Subject information | Psychology | Information skills | Psychology (Applied) - Literature Searching
• plan your own search and try it out on PsycINFO or Web of Science
Questions?
• Do you think what you’ve learned in the session today will be useful to you in the future?