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CJ 3135: Advanced CJ Research Methods

Developing Keywords, Search Strategy & Exploding Articles

Typing in a whole sentence for a search ususally doesn't get good results because the database is trying to match the whole thing - it's best to try to pull the main ideas out of what you are trying to search for - keywords.

All databases (including Google) use a keyword search to return results. (Library databases are also organized by Subject, but start with keywords.)

This online tool can help you create useful keywords from your topic sentence.

These one-page guides will also help you develop search keywords that will get results:

    And, Or, Not

    Combine your search terms with AND, OR, NOT:

    These are called Boolean Operators or search commands for describing what you want to find in a database.
    AND NARROWS RESULTS results must include both words e.g. athletes AND injuries
    OR BROADENS RESULTS results can include either word e.g. athletes OR players
    NOT NARROWS RESULTS results must not include the second word e.g. athletes NOT professional

    Scholarly vs. Popular

    Scholarly Articles Popular Articles
    Authorship Scholars/experts in a field. Authors are always named and their institutional affiliation is given. Staff writers or journalists.
    Publisher University presses, professional associations, research organizations. For profit corporations.
    Review Peer review process by other experts in the field of study. Fact-checker and/or editor.
    Audience Researchers, scholars, other experts. General public.
    Content/Length Usually longer, focusing on a research study, or a review of research literature in a field. Often shorter, with a more general focus.
    Language Technical, discipline specific terminology. Written for a general reader with easier vocabulary.
    Sources Cited in a bibliography adhering to a specific citation style (MLA, APA, etc.) Usually not cited, and when they are, are not generally standardized.
    Structure Usually includes: abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, and bibliography. Specific formats are not followed.
    Advertising Some. Copious.
    Scholarly Journal Popular Magazine

     

    Exploring an Article through Citations

    In addition to preventing plagiarism, citations serve another key role in the research process. They help to provide a longitudinal look at a research topic, providing connections to prior research that the author of an article (or other types of resources) used and to research that came after. Some databases such as Google Scholar and Criminal Justice Abstracts provide tools that can help you "explode" the article you are looking at to related articles. The tools are:

    In the library's databases look for:

    • Cited References - This is the article's reference list. It pulls in the full-text for any of the resources listed if those items are also in that database.
    • Times Cited - This connects you to other articles in the database that used the article you are currently looking at as part of the research.

    In Google Scholar look for:

    • Related Articles - These may be articles from that article's reference list or those that match the same search algorithm that found that article based on relevancy. 
    • Cited by - This connects you to other articles indexed through Google scholar that used the article you are currently looking at as part of the research.