Narrow down and describe your topic to make sure that you're searching for exactly what you want. Brainstorm your idea and write it out; though you can't search for a whole sentence or question, this will help you articulate your topic.
Ask a specific research question; for example, "What is the relationship between aggression, psychology, and social behavior?"
Identify the main ideas and key search terms for your topic.
Example: For the topic "How does aggression impact social behavior?" the following concepts are the most important ones to search for.
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Concept 1 |
Concept 2 |
Concept 3 |
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aggression |
psychology |
social behavior |
OPTIONAL Handy Hint: You'll be tempted to use concepts like "effect," "cause," and "prove." Be aware: an article may be about the effects or proof of something without ever explicitly stating it. If you search for the word "effect" or "prove" and the article doesn't mention the word specifically, your search won't find it.
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concept 1 |
concept 2 |
concept 3 |
|
aggression |
psychology |
social behavior |
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OPTIONAL Handy Hint: Books and background resources like encyclopedias (e.g. Wikipedia) and other reference resources are good places to find more search terms (and to give some context to the detailed articles you'll find in scholarly databases). Find books and other resources at Cornell University Libraries using the global search.