The easiest way to search for information electronically is to enter keywords into the search box of the resource and see what type of results you get. This strategy, however, will often result in too few, too many, or irrelevant results.
In order to retrieve the most relevant results, you will need to construct a search strategy. A search strategy is a combination of keywords, truncation symbols, and boolean operators you enter into the search box of an electronic library resource or an Internet search engine.
For more help on breaking down your research into concepts, main ideas and possible search terms and synonyms, take a look at this handout on developing a search strategy.
Truncation or wildcard symbols can broaden your search and allow you to look for variations of words. For example, searching on sport* would bring up variations such as sport, sports, sporting, sporty, etc.
Note: The truncation symbol varies depending on the electronic resource you are searching. For more information, consult the database’s “help” or “search tips” pages.
Boolean searching is the traditional way to search for information in most online databases and on the Internet. Boolean operators or connector words, such as AND, OR, and NOT are used to create phrases and concepts based on specific rules of search logic.
| Operator | Examples | Results |
| AND |
|
Retrieves records that contain ALL of the search terms. |
| OR |
|
Retrieves records that contain ANY of the search terms, but does not necessarily include all of them. |
| NOT |
|
Excludes records containing the second search term. |
All search strategies on this page borrowed with permission from Joe Eshleman at JWU-Charlotte Library.
If your initial search query does not produce the desired results, try these search strategies.
| Search Strategies | Examples |
| Queries are not case sensitive. |
Barack Obama and barack obama will retrieve the same results.
|
| Keep search queries simple and descriptive and use as few terms as possible. Avoid natural language queries as they can limit your results. | Use colorado statehood instead of when did colorado first become a state. |
|
Google automatically truncates search terms. To prevent automatic truncation, use a + sign in front of each term. |
A query on child retrives results with 'children" and "childcare". |
|
Use double quotations marks ("") to search terms as a phrase and narrow your results. Google will only retrieve results that have those exact terms in the exact order typed. |
A query on Barack Hussein Obama II will retrieve only those sites that refer to Obama by his full name. Sites that refer to him as simply 'Barack Obama' may be overlooked. |
|
Use the site: feature to limit your results to a specific website or class of websites. |
The query cloning site:online.wsj.com will only retrieve articles about cloning from the online version of the Wall Street Journal. A query on cloning site:.gov will only retrieve results within the government domain. |
| To allow for either of several words to appear in your results, use the OR operator. The operator must be in all caps. |
A query on hotel OR lodging OR inn directories will retrieve any or all of the types of directories mentioned. |
|
Results will typically include each word or punctuation mark included in the search query. Some stop words or exceptions apply. |