Truncation searching makes use of the asterisk symbol (*) to help retrieve the root of your keyword in addition to any endings following the last letter.
Example: meditat*
This search will retrieve records that include meditate, meditates, meditated, meditating, and mediation. Where you truncate a keyword can make a difference in your search results; truncate a keyword too early and you could receive results that have nothing to do with what you’re searching for.
Combine truncation with Boolean Operators to create more effective searches:
happiness AND meditation
(happiness OR happy) AND meditat*
(happiness OR well-being OR contentment) AND meditat*
(happiness OR well-being) AND meditat* AND student*
(happiness OR well-being) AND meditat* AND (work or office)
(happiness OR health) AND meditat*
Wildcard Searching makes use of the question mark symbol (?), but rather than including it at the end of the root keyword, you use it in the middle. This can help account for different spellings of words.
Example: reali?e
This search will help return searches containing the keyword variations realise and realize.
The great thing about databases is that the people who designed them want them to be searchable. For the most part, all of the skills mentioned above work the same across all databases, though it is important to point out that each database is a little unique.
The best way to think about learning how to search scholarly databases is like learning a language. All the databases speak the same language, they all just use different dialects. If you learn how to search “Database A” really well, if you’ve developed your skills enough you should have no trouble searching “Database B,” in theory.
As mentioned above, these databases want you to be able to search them, so to help clear up any confusion most of them have “how-to” guides built into their sites. Think of each one as a language manual, it might just take you a bit of digging to find them.
Academic Search Premier’s manual, for example, is located behind their “Help” button, white JSTOR’s manual is a few clicks past their “Support” tab. If you’re having trouble finding the manual for the database you’re searching, try Google-ing “*insert database name here* manual” before moving on.
You can use a proximity search to search for two or more words that occur within a specified number of words (or fewer) of each other in the databases. Proximity searching is used with a keyword or Boolean search.
In EBSCO databases, the proximity operators are composed of a letter (N or W) and a number (to specify the number of words). The proximity operator is placed between the words that are to be searched, as follows:
N5 finds the words if they are within five words of one another regardless of the order in which they appear.
Example: pain N5 relief
This would ask the database to search for the keywords "pain" and "relief" within five words of each other anywhere in the record.
W8 finds the words if they are within eight words of one another and in the order in which you entered them.
Example: libraries W8 schools
This would ask the database to search for the keywords "libraries" and "schools" within eight words of each other, but only in the order they were entered. So a phrase like "libraries are acting as support for public schools" would be found while the phrase "public schools are fighting to save their libraries" would not.
