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History: Search Effectively

Resources for undergraduate students in history courses

Search Effectively

Identify main concepts: Identify key ideas related to your research topic.

Brainstorm synonyms: Generate alternative terms and phrases.

Broaden and narrow terms: Include broader and narrower terms to capture more information.

Account for variations: Consider alternate spellings and word forms.

Use Boolean operators to search databases. Combine or exclude keywords with AND, OR, NOT.

 Jakub T. Jankiewicz, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

 

 

Experiment and refine: Test and adjust keywords based on search results.

Learn from relevant sources: Note keywords used in relevant articles or sources.

Include subject-specific vocabulary: Incorporate specialized terms.

Keep a record: Maintain a list for reference and consistency.