Search Strategies for Electronic Sources

When you use computerized search tools, such as:

use Boolean operators/connectors (and, or, and not) between your terms to refine or expand your search and get better results. For example:
(China and Japan) diagram(China or Japan) diagram[(China) and not (Japan)] diagram
"And" between terms makes the search more specific--think about "baseball and salaries" as a search instead of "baseball" alone;

"Or" broadens a search (housing or building or construction);

"Not" or "no" or "and not" focuses a search on a particular aspect or area of the search results: (mexico) not (new mexico), and eliminates records with the other term(s). Some search engines will let you use a -minus sign for not, such as mexico -new, and a + for "and."

If you do not find what you need, try other terms, concepts or phrases. Searching using sentences or long phrases, such as: "women in the military combat forces" probably won't work, but "women and combat and military" probably will.

If you still do not find what you need, try a different database, email refer@uark.edu or call the Reference department at 479-575-6645.

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