Research Basics

Having a search strategy is important!

If you were researching the Quinnipiac Bobcats sports teams and you performed a keyword search for just the word "bobcat," you would get irrelevant search results, including information about bobcats (the animal) and Bobcat (the construction company):

So, how can you adjust your search to find more accurate results?!

• Your search is dependent on the keywords that you use in your query.

• Always brainstorm at least 5-10 keywords or phrases that relate to your topic before you begin searching.

• If you’re unsure of what keywords to use, browse subject headings, thesauri and indexes to get some ideas.

Consider using Artificial Intelligence (AI) / ChatGPT to help you identify keywords to use in your search!

• An example prompt may look something like this:

  • My research question is: How do influencer marketing campaigns on social media impact brand sales? What are some keywords, synonyms, key concepts, specific stakeholders and/or notable figures (names of people and/or companies) and/or associated words/ideas that I can use in my search strategy to find relevant articles and books on my topic?

• When inputting this prompt into Google's Gemini (or similar AI products) you may see a response similar to this:

* Google. (2024). Gemini [Large language model]. https://gemini.google.com/

• Use different combinations of keywords and synonyms to help broaden or narrow your search!
  • For example, to see different search results, I may type one of these search strings into the search bar of a library database:
    • "social media" AND "influencer marketing"
    • TikTok AND marketing
    • influencer AND "brand sales"
    • "user-generated content" AND sales

Once you've identified 5-10 keywords/concepts based on your research topic, you can build a complex search string by mixing and matching keywords using Boolean Logic. Remember to select 1-3 keywords/concepts to input into the search bar for the best results!

About Boolean Logic

Boolean logic is a powerful tool for refining search results. It involves using specific operators (AND, OR, NOT) to combine keywords and phrases to:

• Connect your search terms together to either narrow or broaden your results
• Helps you piece together information to find exactly what you're looking for
• Yields more accurate results

Common words are used as logical operators:

• AND = results must meet both or all of the criteria
• OR = results must meet at least one of the stated criteria
• NOT = results do not contain the specified terms

Boolean Search Operator: AND

Boolean Search Operator: AND

Narrows your search Retrieve fewer results Results will include both (or all) keywords Connects unrelated concepts Examples: workplace AND diversity cat AND rabies

Boolean Search Operator: OR

Boolean Search Operator: OR

Broadens your search Retrieve more results Results will include one, or the other, or all terms Connects synonyms and related concepts Examples: (dog OR canine OR puppy) Bitcoin OR cryptocurrency

Boolean Search Modifier: Quotation Marks " "

• Use quotation marks to search for an EXACT phrase
• Keeps 2 or more words together

Example: "climate change" -- Without quotation marks, the database would separately search for supply AND chain, not necessarily those words together.

Boolean Search Strategy Examples

• Research Question: How do influencer marketing campaigns on social media impact brand sales?
• Some search strings you could input into the search bar of a library database are:
  • "social media" AND "influencer marketing"
  • TikTok AND marketing
  • influencer AND "brand sales"
  • "user-generated content" AND sales
  • (sales OR revenue) AND influencer