Getting Started with Research: Keywords

When you search in academic databases including MCC Library OneSearch, keywords will give you better search results. Try keywords (or search words) rather than typing in a long phrase such as "all the research that shows evidence to prove there's no life on the moon." So many unnecessary words!

A better search would use keywords and look like this: "life on the moon" and research

Try even more search techniques, such as using truncation with keywords or using parentheses to group your search terms or putting phrases in quotes.

1.When you search library resources, you'll need to change your research question into keywords or search words, like this:

Question: Is there any connection between legal drinking age and crime rates?

Start with just a few important words from your question. These are your initial search words: drinking age, crime 

2. To find many forms of a search word, for example to find either crime or crimes or criminal, use an * after the beginning of the word (this is called truncation):

crim* (will find crime, crimes, criminal but also Crimea, so think about the possibilities when you use truncation)

3. Use "  " to keep words together as a phrase: "drinking age" 

4. Link your terms with

"AND" to find articles that mention all of your search words, 

"OR" to find any of a list of similar words, putting those words inside ( ):

 "drinking age" and (crim* or violen* or felon* or misdemeanor*)

Now you're ready to search!