SMGT 385W

Here are a few simple techniques that can help you get higher quality search results in almost any of EMU's scholarly databases. The same techniques even work in many ordinary search engines like Google, so you can use them outside of your coursework too.

• Use AND to make your search results more relevant
  Example search phrase: football AND safety

If you search for more than one keyword with AND between them, this tells the database, "Show me things that talk about both of these topics, not just one or the other." It can give you a smaller list of results that are a better match to exactly what you want to learn about.

• Use OR to search for related ideas or synonyms
  Example search phrase: facilities OR arenas OR stadiums

Joining keywords with OR tells the database, "Show me things that use at least one of these terms, but they don't have to use both." This is great for researching a topic that is called by different names, or if the preferred term for your research topic has changed over time.

• Use quotation marks to search for phrases with more than one word
  Example search phrase: "professional sports"

Putting a phrase in quotation marks tells a database to look for the exact phrase that you've given it. Without quotation marks, a database might show you articles that just use each of the words somewhere in the article, even if they're not about your topic at all.

• Use an asterisk (*) to search for different forms of a word
  Example search phrase: educat* (will find articles that contain the words "educate," "education," etc.)

You can search for many different forms of a word at once, if you enter part of the word with an asterisk (*) at the end. The asterisk just represents any letter or group of letters that might be on the end of the word.

If you're not finding enough search results, try using different words for the same thing that you're already searching for. Most databases will only search for the exact words you give it, but not words that mean similar things. By searching for other words that mean similar things, you can get more results.

Synonyms

You can link together many different synonyms or related words with OR in your search. The database will search for each of these terms at the same time:

• Coaching OR training
• Marketing OR advertising OR promotion

Broader Terms

You can also pick a term with a similar meaning but that's a little less specific, which can get you more search results:

• "College athletics" OR "school athletics"
• Teenagers OR children

It can even help to keep a list of potential search words that you find as you start learning about your topic. Keep track of which words you've tried searching in each database, to make sure your search is as thorough as possible.

The techniques shown in this video work for most ProQuest databases, including ProQuest One Business, ERIC, ProQuest PowerSearch, PsycINFO, Communication Studies Multisearch, Dissertations & Theses Global, EconLit, GenderWatch, Philosopher's Index, International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, Sociological Abstracts, and more.