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Part 1: searching the catalogue

Basic search types

Using the Guided Keyword option

Subject searching

Part 2: searching for journal articles

Using databases

Creating a search

Refining your results

Quiz

Refining your results

limit example

Too many results

Some strategies to try if you find too much information are:

Try limiting your search geographically or to a particular time period
Add another keyword
Look for features in a database that allow you to limit or refine your search. For example, limit to full text articles, or limit to peer-reviewed articles only.

Too few results

If you have the opposite problem - not enough information - then try one of these strategies:

Rethink your topic - is it part of a wider topic that you could search?
Rethink your terms - are there related terms you could use to broaden your search?
Rethink your search strategy - are you searching for words as a phrase when you should be using individual keywords?
Look for features in your database such as "find related words" that will automatically add synonyms and spelling variations to your search.