UMGC Library: Statistics: Keyword Searching

Search Tips

Use:

Always capitalize Boolean Operators (AND, OR, NOT) in your search statement.
AND
This strategy will narrow your search.
OR
This strategy will broaden your search. Put words linked by OR inside parentheses ( ).
Quotation marks " "
Using quotation marks will ensure that the database finds results that use that exact phrase.
Asterisk *
The * symbol tells the database to search for alternative word endings, for example: cultur* will search for culture, cultures, cultural

Words to include
When you choose keywords for your search, you would want to include just the main ideas of your research question
Use quotation marks
If any of your search terms are phrases longer than one word, you can optimize your search by putting quotation marks around them. Using quotation marks will ensure that the database finds results that use that exact phrase.
Use AND
To search for multiple concepts at the same time, you need to link your search terms with AND. This strategy will narrow your search.

"best practices" AND "web analytics"

If you find that you are retrieving too many results, try adding more keywords to further narrow your topic.

"best practices" AND "web analytics" AND data

If you are searching for a really specific topic, you might not find enough information. In this case, you can try broadening your search by using fewer keywords, or by using OR to add synonyms for your current search terms. If you link synonyms with or, make sure to put them inside parentheses.

"best practices" AND ("web analytics" OR "google analytics")

You can review your searching skills with our Database Searching Basics guide and this UMGC Library Webinar on Boolean Searching.