Keywords, also called search terms, are the words that you enter into the database search boxes. They are the words used in everyday life to describe the topic. Without the right keywords, you may have difficulty finding the articles that you need.
keywords selection process:
Search Results Lists
Filter by a publication date range.
Boolean operators allow you to connect search terms together to get more focused results. The most common are AND, OR and NOT:
| Operator | What does it do? | Examples |
| AND |
|
youth AND drugs child AND development AND play |
| OR |
|
native OR aboriginal job OR career OR profession |
| NOT |
|
depression NOT economic crime AND London NOT Ontario |
When you use library databases, you will often get too many results.
In most databases, the left-hand column of the search results page has many filters/limiters to narrow and improve the relevancy of results.
The categories of filters and limiters include:
relevancy of results.
The library has many different databases and most have this option. This is an example of the field drop-down menu in another database:
In library databases, subject headings are a type of standardized “tag” used to index and organize resources on the same topic, regardless of the words used in the actual text. Searching by subject headings is the most precise way to search article databases.
Also referred to as subject terms or descriptors, subject headings vary depending on the database. A list of subject headings is typically provided within the thesaurus , which can be used to begin a subject search.
For example, ERIC has a link to its Thesaurus that provides the option to search or browse by keyword
