You now know the search terms to use and where to look. But how do you put this together to find what you need? This page highlights some techniques and tricks you can use to make your search more effective. This will help you to create a search strategy.
The options listed below will vary from database to database - if you are having any trouble, get in touch and we can talk you through it.
Many databases allow you to make a focused search using specific terms. We call these terms Boolean operators.
Boolean operators tell a database how to combine your search words and what words you do or do not want in your results. Instead of finding thousands of irrelevant results, you can create a search which finds a much smaller number of useful results.
There are three main Boolean operators:
The 'Advanced Search' option on a database usually has an option to select the Boolean operator you want. You can also type them into your search bar manually - make sure to use capital letters.
Use the tabs above to see what each operator does and how it can help.
marketing AND social media
social media OR social network
social media NOT Facebook
In addition to Boolean operators, you can also use symbols in your search to make it more effective.
We have listed the most common search techniques in the table below. Different databases may use different symbols - if you aren't sure, look for the 'Help' option in the database you are using.
| Technique | What it does | When to use it | Symbol | Example | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phrase searching | Finds an exact phrase | If you have too many irrelevant results | " " | "health promotion" | Items with 'health' and 'promotion' directly next to each other |
| Truncation | Finds words that begin with the same letters | If you have a word which can be singular or plural | * | manag* | manage, manager, manages, managing, managed, management |
| Wildcard | Finds words with variant spellings | If you have words with different spellings like British and American English | ? | behavio?r | behavior, behaviour |
The techniques above should help with most searches. However, if you're working on an advanced project or systematic review, you might need to use more advanced search techniques to find what you need.
Databases read your search terms from left to right. If you include a lot of Boolean operators or, you might need to break it up in order for the database to understand it properly. To do this, we use brackets (parenthesis). This is called nesting.
The Advanced Search option on a database usually has an option to select AND, OR or NOT. It will then automatically nest your terms.
If necessary, you can also type these nested terms out manually.
(mobile OR digital) AND technology
This search will find results with:
mobile OR digital AND technology
This time the search will find results with:
This is a much less effective search.
If you want to find your search terms close to each other but not directly next to each other, you can use proximity searching. You can specify how close the keywords should be to one another and the order in which they appear.
Check the help guide/search tips of the database you are searching to establish correct format as this changes from database to database. However, not all databases support proximity or adjacency searching.