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Conducting Literature Searches

Using Academic Search Engines to Conduct a Literature Search

You have been tasked with writing an academic research report and are required to find, cite, and write using academic or peer-reviewed sources. You think the topic sounds really interesting, but you suddenly hit a roadblock – what on earth is a peer-reviewed source and where do I even begin to find one?!

Don’t worry – this guide is meant to help you navigate academic literature searches so you can find better source information and write about them like a pro.

  • What is a Peer-Reviewed Source?

    An article is peer-reviewed when it goes through an editorial process where several experts in a field review the publication for accuracy and scientific integrity.

    • In general, these are considered the highest quality resources you can use, because they have been vetted by scholars in the field for quality and importance.
    • It is generally accepted in the scientific community that if a publication has gone through the peer-review process, it is very unlikely that the research is fabricated, exaggerated, or influenced by ulterior motives.
    • Peer-reviewed articles are considered primary sources, because they are immediate, first-hand accounts of a research project or topic, from people who had a direct connection with it. Primary sources can include:
      • Law and legislative documents
      • Newspaper articles, written by  a direct witness, or with quotes from people who did
      • Speeches, diaries, letters and interviews
      • Original research
      • Datasets, survey data, such as census or economic statistics
      • Photographs, video, or audio that captured an event
    • Peer-reviewed, scientific articles are generally published in academic journals, which often require access through academic search engines.
  • What is an Academic Search Engine?

    Academic search engines are specialized platforms designed to help users find scholarly articles, research papers, conference proceedings, and other academic resources. These platforms search through specific databases that include academic sources to make it easier to find primary and peer-reviewed publications.

    Several academic search engines cater to different disciplines and provide access to a vast array of scholarly literature. Here are some popular academic search engines:

    • Google Scholar: A freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across various disciplines.
    • PubMed: A database of biomedical literature from the National Library of Medicine.
    • JSTOR: A digital library that provides access to academic journals, books, and primary sources across multiple disciplines.
    • Scopus: An abstract and citation database covering a wide range of subject areas, including science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities.
    • ScienceDirect: A full-text scientific database offering access to a vast collection of peer-reviewed journals, articles, and book chapters across various disciplines.
    • Unity’s Dorothy W. Quimby Library: Our university library has access to over 100 databases that will help you access academic journals. With your Unity student login you can access full-text of articles here that you may not be able to access from these other search engines.
  • How to Write Your Search Terms

    To find the most relevant literature for your search purposes, it’s essential to use appropriate keywords and specific connecting words, also called Boolean operators.

    • Keywords: Start by identifying key terms related to your topic or research question. Be specific and use synonyms or related terms to broaden your search.
      • For example, if your topic is “climate change,” relevant keywords could include “global warming,” “environmental impact,” or “carbon emissions.”
    • Boolean Operators: A boolean operator is a set of specific connecting words that search engines understand to know if you want to include, combine, or exclude specific keywords, which can make your keyword searches more precise and effective. Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) help you refine and narrow down your search results.
      • AND: Use “AND” to combine multiple keywords and retrieve articles that contain all of the specified terms. For example, “climate change AND impacts” will return articles that discuss both climate change and its impacts.
      • OR: Use “OR” to broaden your search and retrieve articles that contain any of the specified terms. For example, “climate change OR global warming” will return articles that mention either climate change or global warming.
      • NOT: Use “NOT” to exclude specific terms from your search results. For example, “climate change NOT politics” will exclude articles that discuss the political aspects of climate change.
      • Quotation Marks “”: Use quotation marks around specific key phrases to get results that include this exact phase. For example, “Newtonian mechanics.”
      • Parentheses (): Use parentheses to group together keywords and control the order in which terms will be searched. For example, “(rural OR urban) AND sociology.”
      • Asterisk *: Use an asterisk after a keyword to find results containing close variations of the keyword. For example, searching “Develop*” will return results containing words such as “development,” “developer,” and “developing.”

    Want to dig a little deeper into tips and tricks for conducting efficient literature searches? Check out these videos for a deeper dive:

  • Refining Your Search Results

    Once you’ve entered your keywords and Boolean operators, you may need to further refine your search results. Most academic search engines offer advanced search options, allowing you to filter results by publication date, author, journal, and more. Take advantage of these features to narrow down your results and find the most relevant literature.

  • Remember to Evaluate Your Sources!

    Finally, remember to critically evaluate the sources you find. Consider the credibility of the authors, the publication venue, the methodology used, and whether the research is a peer-reviewed or primary source.