Basic Research Skills Created by Deana Hueners For DSU Composition Students

Conducting Research What is your goal in conducting research?

good reliable Not just to find information— but to find good and reliable information!

How Do You Find Quality Material? Select information that is edited or peer-reviewed When possible, select articles from “refereed journals” Using search tools that only include these types of materials will maximize your results and save you time

Quality Search Tools Quality search tools are not free; however, most libraries subscribe to or buy on-line access to these “information services” and offer them to their patrons Information services offer access to databases of materials that have been edited or refereed

Common Information Services Offers Academic, Reference, Business and Health databases. Provides citations and full-text articles. Provides Current News, Business, Legal and Medical databases. Provides full-text articles.

Provides a searchable database of over 8000 magazines, journals, and newspapers. Offers citations, full-text articles and images. Provides access to a number of databases. Offers mostly citations.

Allows searches of numerous library catalogs; magazine, business, and education indexes; of Library of Congress materials; and several South Dakota newspapers.

5 Steps to Information Success 1.Define the research problem. 2.Develop a strategy to solve the problem. 3.Locate the information. 4.Engage the information and extract what you find useful. 5.Integrate the information from various sources in order to solve your problem.

Step 1: Define the Problem Figure out what information you need to find based on the assignment requirements and intended audience. For help in narrowing an unlimited topic area, choose a broad topic and them limit it by: Reading overview sources such as encyclopedias Scan titles in indexes for ideas Examine a book/textbook index for ideas

Step 2: Strategize a Solution What type of sources will your project require? Overview? In-depth information? Current information? Facts and statistics? Definitions? Addresses or business information? Non-textual materials?

Step 2: Strategize a Solution Scholarly Technical/trade Substantial news Popular Sensational quality Decide on the quality of information you need. Five Main Types of Magazines/Journals

Step 2: Strategize a Solution How do you find the information you desire? Use the library catalog (SDLN) to find out what the library subscribes to. Use periodical indexes (information services) to find articles. Use Internet search engines to find information on the web.

Step 3:Seek & Evaluate the Information Use the online library information services to search for “key words”. If you aren’t sure where to start, ask the librarian for assistance. Note—each library may offer different services, so always check the library catalog when you are new to a library.

Step 3:Seek & Evaluate the Information The right content? The right quality? The right time period? Questions to consider: Is the information you’re finding... Are you using... The right sources? The right keywords? The right tools?

Step 4: Use & Evaluate Information Use the Info: Read it Listen to it View it Evaluate the Info: Take notes Take citations Determine whether it is information you need.

Step 5: Synthesize the Information Integrate the information collected from various sources to answer your research question. This is the key component to producing a quality research paper.

Talking to Computer Databases 1.Create a list of “Keywords” 2.Familiarize yourself with “Boolean Operators” 3.Consider “Proximity” 4.Put “Wildcards ” to use

Boolean Operators AND – tells a system that both terms are required. Censorship and music OR– tells a system that either one word or the other are required. Farms or ranches NOT– tells a system to find one word but not if it is with the other word. Guns not hunting

Proximity Phrase Searching allows you to tell a system to search for words in the order given. Different systems provide different methods, so check the search instructions for the information service you are working with. Gender w bias “Gender bias”

Wildcards Wildcard characters allow you to search for “root words”. Each system’s wildcard character may differ. Educat# Educat* * Or # will produce matches for educator, education, educate, or educational.

Evaluating Web Sources

The End last updated 9/14/99