Skip to Main Content
Research Guides

War and Occupation in Northern Europe (SCAND 445/590 - JSIS A 442): Choosing and Modifying Keywords

About Keyword Searching

Choosing the right keywords is essential for conducting effective research in library databases. Finding effective keywords is a process of trial and error that may require multiple attempts to find the best results for your search. Here are tips for honing in on the best terms to use:

  • Identify Key Concepts: Distill your topic into 2-3 main concepts, avoiding common words.
  • Brainstorm Synonyms: Use a thesaurus or relevant literature to find synonyms for your main concepts.
  • Utilize Boolean Operators: Combine terms using AND, OR, NOT to broaden or narrow your search.
  • Use Exact Phrases: Put phrases in quotes to search for exact terms, e.g., "winter war."
  • Mine Search Results: Look at search results for additional keywords, including subject terms and author-supplied keywords.
  • Apply Truncation and Wildcards: Use symbols like *, $, ! to find word variations.
  • Explore Database Features: Check subject headings in database entries to find related terms.
  • Experiment and Iterate: Test various combinations of keywords and refine based on the relevance of search results.

Using Boolean Operators with Keywords

Broaden a search:

  • OR broadens a search by including results with any of the terms used, alone or in combination.
  • * (asterisk) broadens search by finding variations of a term, accommodating different word endings.

Narrow a search:

  • AND narrows a search by requiring all terms be included.
  • NOT narrows a search by excluding terms from the search.
  • " " (quotation marks) narrow a search by requiring terms appear in a specific order.

Subject Terms

Different databases often utilize their own set of controlled vocabularies, known as subject headings, to index content related to specific topics. These headings aid research by enabling you to find materials related to a topic regardless of the keywords used by the authors.

Different tools may categorize the same topic under various subject headings. For example, subject terms vary across search tools for the topic World War II:

  • World War, 1939-1945 (Library of Congress Subject Headings)
  • World War II (Historical Abstracts; MLA International Bibliography)

Also compare these subject terms for the Winter War:

  • Russo-Finnish War, 1939-1940 (Historical Abstracts; Library of Congress Subject Headings)
  • Finno-Soviet Wars (MLA International Bibliography)