Since database search functions don't use "natural language" (like asking, "what is the relationship between immune system health and vitamin C consumption") and instead asks that we identify search terms or keywords that will help scan all possible results for relevant information (like "immune system" AND "vitamin C" AND "effects"). Generating these keywords can be a process that involves seeing which terms other researchers are using when they ask similar questions and narrowing down specialized vocabularies that different fields and disciplines might use.
In addition to adding in search filters, generating keywords is the best way to search strategically and can also help you in the process of articulating your research question and narrowing down or refining some of your own ideas.
This video from our colleagues at Seattle Central College offers a good example of what this process can look like. Their advice to keep "one idea per search bar" is especially helpful:
Remember: all good research, and all research really worth doing, is lead out of our authentic curiosity and an ability to embrace the Exploration of encountering things we maybe didn't expect to find. And in an information economy where the most important knowledge is accessible to so few of us, it's really valid to be frustrated at how much academic literature is still behind paywalls and can feel inaccessible and out of reach.
This is where your Shoreline CC Librarians come in! It's our job to help you throughout this whole process, whether you don't know where to start or if you're trying to narrow down to that last piece of the research puzzle.
You can stop by our Reference Help Desk in the Library anytime between 10am-close for drop-in help with a Librarian, or you can email us at Library@Shoreline.edu. You can make a one-on-one librarian appointment to meet over Zoom or reach out to our 24/7 Chat service where there will always be a Librarian at the other end to help.
