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Africa: History and Culture: Advanced Searching Tips

This guide is a resource for those studying Africa in the social sciences and history.

Common Problems and Solutions

What habits tend to retrieve good search results?

  • Boolean operators
  • Good subject headings and keywords
  • Accurate spelling
  • Narrowing search with filters/limiters

How do I widen a search to get more results?

  • Use a broader subject heading
  • Use fewer search terms or more synonyms (e.g., teens OR adolescents)
  • Check spelling

How do I narrow a search to get fewer results?

  • Add more search terms
  • Reduce search from ALL FIELDS to specific data fields like Title/Abstract
  • Use a subject-specific database rather than GALILEO Discover

What do I do when I receive null (zero) results?

  • Check Boolean Operators (use more OR’s than AND’s to widen the results)
  • Try removing less important subject headings or keywords
  • Try using the GALILEO Discover consolidated search bar rather than specific databases

Develop a winning Search Strategy

Game of Thrones stillWhat is a search strategy?

A "search strategy" is like your plan of attack and requires a bit of strategy to successfully execute.

A winning search strategy is:

  • Targeted and iterative - Identity different sites to deploy your search strategy. 
    • GALILEO
    • Relevant, individual databases
    • GIL-Find Catalog
    • Web search engine, like Google or Google Scholar.
  • Armed with search techniques and tactics - Enlist Boolean Operators, subject headings, parentheses, truncation and wildcard devices in your army and deploy them when needed.
  • Flexible - Tweak search strategy according to where you search.
  • Evolving - Modify the search strategy as you search. Experiment with various search techniques and tactics to see if you get different, more relevant results.

Image credit: Helen Sloan/HBO, retrieved from EW

Quick Tips

 

  • What database or resource should I use? e.g., broader topics might benefit from a subject-specific database, while very narrow searches might work best with a consolidated search such as GALILEO Discover
  • What keywords or "key phrases" stand out in my research topic? These will form your "search query".
  • What subject headings or authorized headings are associated with my topic? You typically find these in the source's record in a catalog or database.
  • What Boolean Operators can help me focus my search? AND, OR, NOT. e.g., Colleges NOT Universities
  • Are wildcards or truncation necessary and supported by my database? e.g., * is a popular truncation device. Strateg* will retrieve strategy, strategies, strategic, strategically, strategist, etc. 
  • Would I benefit from a Research Consultation with a librarian? A librarian can benefit you by
    • Recommending useful databases for your topic
    • Guiding you on structuring your search query. 
    • Showing you tips and tricks on how to expand or narrow your search.
    • And more...
The 'Search Strategy Cycle'

The Search Strategy Cycle graphic depicts the 5 main phases of establishing and executing a Search Strategy:

  1. Identify key concepts & terms (also known as 'keywords')  - these will form your "search query".
    • Graphic depicting Search Strategy cycle. 5 circles illustrate the chief phases. The headings in each circle, beginning from top, and going clockwise, is written in text on left.Identify any synonyms or related key concepts if you can.

       

  2. Select relevant databases or resources to search
    • Tip: Our Research Guides recommend top databases for a subject our course.

       

  3. Combine search terms with Boolean operators  Typical operators are AND, OR, and NOT. Some databases use NEAR. 
    • If you have synonyms, combine these with the main search terms with OR.
    • Structure your combinations with parentheses.
    • Incorporate search techniques, if applicable, like:
      • Quotation marks - to search for phrases
      • Truncation devices - to include word variations
      • Wildcard devices - to include spelling and singular vs. plural variations

         

  4. Run your search query in selected resources, eg. GALILEO, individual databases, GIL-Find catalog, Google Scholar.

     

  5. Review and refine search results
    • Most databases have a panel to easily refine your results in a range of ways.
    • GALILEO and most databases have a folder or shortlist, for saving, e-mailing, and exporting citations.  

Modify your search strategy 

Revisit a phase of the cycle to see if you can find different sources. Tips:

  • Try different synonyms.
  • Look at the subject headings and author-supplied keywords of a record, if there are any.
  • Try "backward citation searching" and "forward citation searching".

Searching Tips

These search tips will help you whether you are looking in an online database or a library catalog.

Searching Databases by Yavapai College Library

Take some time to think of the best keywords to enter and be ready to change them as you pursue your topic.  Get ideas for new keywords by carefully examining the title and subject fields in your most promising results.

Try these search features:

  • Use Boolean search logic to combine keywords in order to narrow or expand your search (AND, OR, NOT)
    • AND: Use AND to narrow down your results, e.g. Augusta AND CSRA
    • OR: Use OR to expand your results, e.g. Augusta OR CSRA
    • NOT: Use NOT to eliminate words from appearing in your search results, e.g. Augusta NOT Maine
  • Use quotation marks to search for a phrase (If you type in strategic plan without quotations into a search engine, it will bring back any pages with the words strategic and plan in them. If you type "strategic plan" into a search engine, it knows to look for those words together as a phrase.
  • Use truncation (strateg* will find strategic, strategy, strategies, for example)
  • Use parentheses to direct the search engine to perform your search in a certain order. (If you type in (macaroni OR shells) AND cheese into a search engine, it will know to look for pages that have either the words macaroni and cheese or shells and cheese.

In most databases, you can also:

  • Search in full text and search by subject, title, and author.
  • Set search limits such as scholarly journals, full-text, or document type
  • Sort results by date or relevance
  • Look at suggested subjects to narrow your search