Searching and Breadcrumbing: Why You Shouldn’t Have to Say “I wanted to do this topic, but I couldn’t find anything on it”

Principle 1: Find the original An article on choice summarizes expert opinion: Choice is a hallmark of capitalism, and most of us would agree that having too many choices is far better than having no choices. A growing body of research, though, shows Americans have become so besieged by choices that many feel paralyzed and confused (Block, 2006).

Principle 1: Find the original The article mentions Barry Schwartz: The problem is that many of us aren't up to making such decisions, says Barry Schwartz, a psychology professor at Swarthmore College and author of The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less (Block, 2006). Why does Schwartz say this? To find out, you need to know where he says it.

Principle 1: Find the original 4. The intext citation (Block, 2006) points you to the reference list entry: References Block, S. (2006, January 16). So many choices? What to do? What to do? USA Today, Money, 1b. Retrieved March 18, 2008, from Academic Search Elite database.

Principle 1: Find the original This is a popular source written by someone with no expert background for readers with no expert background at about a 6th grade reading level Where could we find more credible sources for Schwartz’s ideas on choice?

Principle 1: Google results First-hand or primary Current Reputable newspaper What are the trusted sources in your field? Where are the scholarly sources? aka Alpha Roosters?

Principle 1: Alpha Roosters Although one should not necessarily judge an article by where it appears, there is a pecking order in clinical medicine. The New England Journal of Medicine and The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) are the top roosters. Although one should not necessarily judge an article by where it appears, there is a pecking order in clinical medicine. Dr. Jerome Groopman (2007) How Doctors Think

Principle 1: Find Alphas To recognize an alpha rooster, you need to know the difference between these periodicals: popular Launch your favorite search engine. Search for difference popular scholarly journal Check out two or more of the results. professional scholarly What differences did you find?

Principle 1: Find Roosters To recognize an alpha rooster, you need to know the difference between these types of periodicals: popular What differences did you find? professional • “Is It a Magazine or Journal?” (Staley Library) scholarly • “Popular Magazines VS Trade Magazines VS Scholarly Journals” (CSU Libraries) • “Critical Evaluation of Resources” (Berkeley Library)

Principle 1: Find Alphas Try your search at http://scholar.google.com Note: for premium articles, see if the library can get them interlibrary loan To find only free articles, go to http://findarticles.com/

Principle 1: Find Alphas Try your search at http://search.ebscohost.com

Principle 1: Find Alphas Try your search at http://search.ebscohost.com beta beta alpha alpha don’t bother

Principle 1: Which are alphas? Rank these sources from most credible to least credible. WebMD is reputable, but popular Trudeau is a convicted criminal; many reviewers have identified misinformation in his book

Principle 1: Wikipedia ≠ Alpha Wiki means anyone can edit it • Wikipedia should not be in your reference list. • It can make a great starting point. • Follow links and cite the original sources.

Principle 1: Use alpha definitions Which definitions are authoratitive? http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/psychiatry/eating/eating.htm#ref1 DSM = Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association)

Principle 1: Use alpha definitions Where do I find this information? Anorexia nervosa. (2008, June 26). Retrieved from National Institutes of Mental Health Web site: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/ eating-disrders/ anorexia-nervosa.shmtl Why not just URL? They change, so you need redudant information. Also, it’s useful to know if it comes from a recognized source; e.g., Dr. Andrew Weil.

Principle 2: Breadcrumb Like Hansel and Gretel, follow the breadcrumb trail

Principle 2: Breadcrumb Popular article Citations http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/113/4/708 Original study

Principle 2: Breadcrumb Article that cited study Reference list Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007;161(5):480-486. http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/161/5/480 New trail to follow

Principle 2: Breadcrumb Basic format: Author. (Date). Retrieval information. Book Perrin, R. (2006). Pocket guide to APA style. New York: Houghton Mifflin. Journal Cuddy, C. M. (2002). Demystifying APA style. Orthopaedic Nursing, 21(5), 35-42. Retrieved June 28, 2004, from Academic Search Premier database. Web article APA documentation. (2006). Retrieved August 27, 2007, from University of Wisconsin Writing Center Web site: http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html

Principle 2: Breadcrumb http://www.uwisc.edu ? http://www.uwisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html

Principle 3: Trust the process Kuhlthau’s Model of Research

Principle 3: Trust the process Is Kuhlthau’s model credible? What’s in her reference list?