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Concepts & Terminology
AND OR NOT
Getting Ready to Search
@ the Health Sciences Library
Potpourri
100
Databases use lists of words, much like an index at the back of a book, to describe individual articles. The group of words used to describe articles in a given database is often referred to as this.
What is Controlled Vocabulary?
100
This Boolean operator will help you to broaden your search.
What is OR?
100
Before you begin searching, it is essential to determine this. How else will you know what type of information and how much of it you require?
What is a search goal?
100
Accessing PubMed and other resources from the Health Sciences Library web site will ensure you have access to this (when available).
What is online full-text?
100
The application of the best evidence when making or influencing any decision including decisions which affect an individual patient, decisions involved in writing a research paper or review, or decisions involved in implementing a service program.
What is Evidence Informed Decision Making?
200
In searching, the use of everyday natural words and phrases, instead of index terms (Controlled Vocabulary), to search bibliographic databases.
What is Natural Language / freetext searching?
200
This Boolean operator will help you to exclude a concept from your search
What is NOT?
200
A general rule of searching is to use this number of key concepts for your search.
What is 2-5 ?
200
You can access online full-text through the Health Sciences Library remotely through the databases web page, and also through this resource.
What is Health Sciences Catalogue?
200
When searching this resource you are getting a very large number of results, which may or may not be relevant to your search.
What is Google?
300
Natural Language / freetext searching is useful at the beginning of your search when you are browsing to see the breadth of a given topic. This process is sometimes referred to as...
What is Scope Searching / Preliminary Searching?
300
This Boolean operator will help to narrow your search, and exclude instances where only one of your concepts are used.
What is AND?
300
Your choice of this should correspond with the broader subject of your search, as well as how much information you are looking to obtain.
What is a database?
300
If you cannot get online full-text for an article in PubMed, you can order one through this service.
What is Loansome Doc?
300
To deal with the wealth of information resources such as Google provide, these resources are needed to limit the pool of information.
What are subject- specific bibliographic databases?
400
Utilizing controlled vocabulary within a database will give you results which are very ..
What is Precise?
400
Databases interpret Boolean logic in this order.
What is Parenthesis, NOT, AND , OR ?
400
Once you have key concepts to search from, it is also helpful to think of these words. They will be very similar to your key concepts.
What are synonyms?
400
You can request items that the library does not have through this form on the library web page.
What is Interlibrary Loan?
400
A step-by-step approach is preferred when searching. This means searching each concept separately and then ...
What is combine using Boolean operators (AND OR NOT)?
500
An effective search strategy is often a balance between these two forms of searching.
What is scope (Preliminary, Natural Language, freetext) searching and Precision searching?
500
Doing this to a search strategy breaks up your Boolean operators so the database is not confused about where to start searching.
What is Using Nesting (brackets/parenthesis)?
500
Constructing an effective combination of search terms involves breaking down the question into ‘concepts’ and keywords. P-I-C-O can help to structure the search (but it is not essential that every element is used) and stands for - what?
What is Population (patient) , Intervention, Comparison, Outcome?
500
Always use this as a starting point for your search, to ensure you are getting the most from the library.
What is Health Sciences Library Web Page?
500
Carrying out an effective search requires that you also look for information that does not support your expected outcome. This allows you to limit this aspect ...
What is Bias?