Searching Tips

1. Consider various keywords for your topic.
2. Join the keywords with AND
3. UNLESS keywords are synonymous, then use OR.
4. Search for a phrase using NO connectors; just type it in.

5. If you retrieve too many items:
a. Use another appropriate keyword and join it with AND.
b. Use publication years, library holdings, or language to narrow.

7. If you retrieve too few items:
a. Check your spelling.
b. Use fewer keywords.
c. If you using a phrase, use AND to connect keywords instead.
d. If you are using keywords from the thesaurus, try using other words.
e. If you are not using keywords from the thesaurus, try it (Subjects).

Searching examples:

Use AND if you want to find ALL the keywords in the retrieved items.

prison and juveniles

Use OR if you want to find ANY of the keywords in the retrieved items.

aviation or airlines or airports

Use no connectors if you want to find a phrase (all the words in a specific order).

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

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This presentation was created to train criminal justice and criminology students at St. Mary's University in the use of information resources. Created December 1996. Last modified