Writing 117-01 (Gingold, Fall 2023)

If you want to review search strategies, this video covers three which you can apply in your database searches. (3:04).

" "

To search for specific phrases, enclose them in quotation marks. The database will search for those words together in that order.

Examples:

“K-Pop”

“commodity fetishism”

“popular culture”

“true crime”

AND, OR

Join together search terms in a logical manner.

AND - narrows searches, used to join dissimilar terms
OR - broadens searches, used to join similar terms

Examples:

#1
drag AND "popular culture"

#2
sorority OR “greek system”

#3
tik tok
AND
"college students" OR "high school students"
AND
culture

TRUNCATION

Truncate a word in order to search for different forms of the same word. Many database use the asterisk * as the truncation symbol.

Example:

Truncate the word child* to search for child, childhood, children etc.

Add the truncation symbol to cultur* to search for culture, cultures, cultural etc.