Spelling mistakes
paediatriac
Search errors
AND, OR, truncation or proximity
see Your search strategy to check for these errors
Synonyms
Words with a similar meaning
(paediatric OR child)
Alternative spellings
Capture global literature using all spelling variations
(paediatric OR pediatric)
(organisation OR organization)
Alternative terminology
Capture global literature using all terminology variations
(GP OR "family physician")
(physiotherapy OR "physical therapy")
Variations of a word
plural, noun forms, verb forms
(child OR children or childhood)
The last example above can use truncation to search all these options: child*
Sometimes a concept is important for your question but not your search, test if removing them helps.
Remove concepts
For example:
Low result numbers doesn't mean your search is bad. It can mean this is an emerging area of research.
If you have tried the steps above but still aren’t getting enough results for your task you may need to broaden your search question.
Broaden your research question
Efficacy of meditation for pain management after back surgery
Efficacy of complementary health approaches for pain management after back surgery
See Your research question for more examples.
A large number of results isn't a problem, however too many irrelevant results are.
For more information and more review types check our Which review is that? library guide
Answer a specific question by summarising all evidence that meets set criteria.
The methods used to search for and analyse the data are published.
In order to analyse the data effectively inclusion and exclusion criteria are needed eg types of studies, number of participants in each group, age of participants.
Look for all evidence that meets set criteria, but often address a broad question.
They are used to identify knowledge gaps, scope a body of literature,
clarify concepts, investigate research conduct, or to inform a systematic
review.
Inclusion and exclusion criteria are used.
Summarise history, importance, and collective thinking on a particular topic.
Up to author to decide what is included, no set criteria.
The whole collection of subject headings is called a controlled vocabulary or thesaurus.
Watch this video (4 minutes) on the basics of subject headings.
PubMed gives quick, relevant results.
The interface and search algorithm are a bit more "google-like".
Ovid gives greater search control
Has a greater number of search fields and filters. Quick, basic search also available.
A multidisciplinary database does not have one focus, such as medicine, but covers a range of disciplines such as health, sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities.
Here are three widely used multidisciplinary databases:
They can be useful for:
A scholarly journal article is written by experts and goes through a process of peer review.
Experts in the field are asked to rigorously check an article for quality, originality and accuracy.
This feedback is given to the editor who decides if the work is suitable for inclusion or needs revisions.
Click spots below for more information:
Database contains | Can search? | Examples |
---|---|---|
Peer review and non-peer review |
Look for a:
|
CINAHL Informit Health Collection |
Peer review and non-peer review
|
|
Web of Science Scopus Google Scholar |
Only peer reviewed journals
|
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Medline (Ovid) PubMed |
Scholarly books, conference proceedings, textbooks and reference works are all other types of academic literature and may appear in library databases.
Check with your tutor or lecturer what is suitable for a particular assessment.