To identify books and other items in the Reese or Greenblatt Libraries' collections, use GIL-Find. Our catalog also provides access to books from the eBooks on EBSCOhost database.
To identify journal articles in different subject areas, use the databases in GALILEO.
To retrieve an article that you've already identified, use Reese Library's E-Journals list.
To retrieve books that Reese Library doesn't own, use GIL Express.
To retrieve articles that Augusta University doesn't own or have access to, use ILLiad.
To look for books and other materials -- but not journal articles -- beyond the local region, use WorldCat.
This list of steps and reminders for beginning a literature review takes the specific perspective of using the resources that your library provides in beginning your search. It does not assume that you have refined your topic to its final state. Very often, the search process itself gives you the focus you need. Research is a layered process; navigating the library's resources is one of the fundamental layers.
So, how do you begin a search? One way is to search by whatever words you know. Finding a source which uses the same words you're using to express subject of interest can be illuminating, but don't stop there. Another useful approach is to use the words the database content developers use to describe the contents of the article. These "subject headings" are sometimes called DESCRIPTORS in the research databases.
Steps for beginning a literature review using catalogs and databases:
Write down your topic and select important keywords to search for. Include synonyms for each keyword.
Select the best database to begin your search in. The page "Databases for Career Counseling" has a list of choices for you to consult. Be prepared to use more than one database, as each has unique and important content.
Use the 'advanced search' interface wherever possible. It will give you more intuitive ways to combine concepts, and more inclusive ways to find research studies than just using the word 'research' as a search term.
If your database of choice has a controlled vocabulary, use it; some databases have thesauri, or lists of subject headings, which spell out not only the terminology, but the relationships between terms. Subject headings or descriptors that describe a useful study will give you good terms to use to redefine or expand a search. Looking at the relationships between terms is also useful in deciding how to define your search. Many of these thesauri are searchable components of the corresponding online databases.
Generally speaking, the more terms you combine in a database search, the more precise -- and narrow -- your results will be. If you retrieve too few items, try dropping some combinations from your search strategy.
Scan the first 10-20 records of the results. If they don't match what you want, try a different combination. PERSEVERE!
Look at the reference lists of the sources you're using. If the same studies are cited over and over, no matter how old they are, be sure to look up those studies too, whether they appear in your list of database results or not.
When you find an article, research study, book, or other source that fits well with your topic, make note of the author's sources, as these may also be good leads for you to follow in your own review. This is particularly important when you are reviewing a topic which has not had a lot of research or publication devoted to it.
