Gleeson Library: MSN Library Orientation: Research Strategies

Welcome! From Gleeson Library

A video introduction from your librarian

Asking questions & finding a research topic

The following brief video will discuss strategies for developing a research question.

Learning Outcomes

Students will:

Know how to distinguish between topics they’re curious about and those they merely like
Understand that research questions should not be too broad or too narrow

Searching with Keywords

Once you've developed a suitable research question, it's time to dive into the databases. This presentation will introduce you to some general concepts relevant to keyword searching. Make sure you don't skip the two videos at the end-- they provide essential information on how to search CINAHL and PubMed.

Learning outcomes

Students will:

Generate a list of relevant keywords for their search
Combine those keywords using AND, OR, and NOT
Use parentheses and quotes as part of their search strategy, as needed

To view the content, click on the image of the wolves and start scrolling.

Watch the CINAHL keyword searching video again!

Watch the PubMed keyword searching video again!

Searching with Subject Headings

Using subject headings make you a more effective researcher, particularly when keyword searches just aren't working. This presentation will explain what subject headings are, and the two brief videos at the end will show you how to run a search using subject headings in CINAHL and PubMed.

Learning Outcomes

Understand how subject headings can improve the accuracy of a search
Use the thesaurus in CINAHL and the MeSH database in PubMed to identify appropriate subject headings and use the in a search.

To view the content, click on the image of the wolves and start scrolling.