Performing a literature search

 
1. Introduction 5. Boolean operators
2. Search strategies 6. Summary points
3. Search features 7. Useful databases
4. Optional features 8. Further help

Search features

Wildcards

Wildcards are a way of searching for alternative spellings of the same words. For instance, there are a number of words that are spelt differently in the US, including organisation (organization in the US) and paediatric (pediatric in the US). 

To use the wildcard feature, you just need to substitute the wildcard symbol, which is often ? , to replace a missing letter. 

For example, you could search for “change behavio?r”  to capture both “behaviour” and “behavior”

Truncation

Truncation is a way to try and capture all relevant material by searching for words or phrases which use the same root. 

To use the truncation feature, you just need to put the truncation symbol, which is often either $ or * at the root of a word.

For example, if you were looking for information on mobile applications you could use mobile app$ as this would bring up:

  • Mobile application
  • Mobile applications
  • Mobile app
  • Mobile apps

Note: Use truncation with caution as it can sometimes bring up irrelevant results. For instance, a search on commission$ would bring up references on commissioning but also references on the "Commission for Health Improvement". 

Search parameters

When constructing your question it is really important to think about other variables which you can use to restrict your search results.  This process will really help you to clarify the information you are looking for and so help you to find more focused results. Most databases will allow you to restrict your search using the following parameters which you could apply either before or after you have conducted your initial search.

So, ask yourself:

  • Publication date: How far back do you want to search? Some databases go back to 1946, but you might only want information spanning the last 10 years. So, when you do your search think about limiting it by year of publication. 
  • Age: Are you looking for information related to a certain age range? Some databases will allow you to limit your search by: “infant”, “adult”, “adolescent” or “ frail elderly” etc, so bear this in mind when you are limiting your search.
  • Publication type: What type of material type do you want to find? Are you specifically looking for: articles, websites, statistics or grey literature? - if so, use the databases's search restrictions to refine your search by material/publication type. 
  • Language: Do you only want to retrieve articles written in the English language?   Most databases will allow you to limit your search by a variety of languages which might help you to refine your search further.
  • Country of origin: Are you looking for information relating to the UK only, do you want to compare the UK with the USA or do you want to find material from “anywhere”? Deciding whether you are relating your search to the UK or furthe afield is a really effective way of refining and focussing your search results. This might also have a bearing on which databases you decide to use as some are decidedly more US bias than others. e.g. Medline is very US focused.

Test your understanding

If you were searching for articles which have psychology and psychoanalyst as keywords, which of the following truncated search terms would you use?

  • psych*
  • psycho*
  • pyscholog*

Answer

psycho*

This is the best place for the truncation sign to be placed in order capture all the relevant material containing the same root.

If you place the truncation sign too early in a word too many words will be retrieved. For example, psych* would bring up; psyche, psychiatrist, psychedelic etc.

Likewise if you place the truncation sign too late in a word you could miss relevant words altogether. For example, psycholog* would bring up psychology , psychologist, psychological but miss out the phrase psychoanalyst.

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