Library GuidesLibrary GuidesWith Advanced search, you may carefully construct an effective search by entering terms in multiple boxes and connecting them with AND, OR, or NOT.
In "Select a Field," you may focus your search by selecting a particular field from the dropdown menu. The field selected will be searched for the keyword or phrase in the search box.--and results that are a match will be returned. Fields available include: text (meaning all text is searched), author, title, subject, etc. To search more broadly, just leave the field as "select a field."
Unlike Google which allows users to enter queries using "natural language," searching an academic database like Scholarsearch requires that the user combine select keywords using AND, OR, or NOT -- also known as Boolean operators. To optimize your search, try different combinations of different keywords related to your topic.
Develop a list of keywords.
As you get results, pay attention to keywords or subjects provided by the authors. Use these terms to add to and build your keyword list. Enter these new terms into the search boxes and browse the new results. Searching is an iterative process that takes time! Don't rush this part of the research process.
Filters are what sets academic databases apart from search engines like Google. Once you have your results, use the filters on the left side of the webpage to limit them for more useful resources.
What can filters do for you? If you need articles from peer reviewed journals, click that box. If you need ONLY items that are available in the Drew Library, and full text, use the "Available in Drew Library " limiter. Without this limiter, you’ll get more results, not all full text, but which you can obtain with Interlibrary Loan.
Scroll the Publication date limiter to the right to narrow the publication dates of your results.
More limiters are available for subjects, publications, source type (books, newspapers, etc) and language--you'll find them as you move down the webpage.
Questions? Need Help? Email reference@drew.edu
Drew University Library, http://www.drew.edu/library