Information Services and Systems Literature Searching MNEM10 Research methods November 2013

Information Services and Systems By the end of this session you will be able to: Select the best academic sources for your assignments Plan a literature search & select search terms Use the following specialist tools effectively: - EBSCO Business Source Complete; - ProQuest Business Collection (includes the International Bibliography of the Social Sciences); - Web of Science.

Information Services and Systems How to find information for your next assignment. Different types of publication = different types of information.

Information Services and Systems Textbooks, dictionaries and encyclopaedias Getting started Get an overview of the topic Definitions of key terms Understanding the essay question

Information Services and Systems Journal articles The most important source of information In-depth Latest international research Scholarly Theories

Information Services and Systems What is a peer-reviewed journal? The best quality information. Also known as “scholarly journals” Articles written by researchers are scrutinized before they are published. Experts examine the methodology, the analysis, the data and the conclusions before the paper can be published.

Information Services and Systems Reports Facts and figures Industries Market research Countries Economies Companies Commodities

Information Services and Systems News Current events Latest economic crises Latest mergers and take-overs Stock prices Use quality news sources, e.g The Economist, Financial Times

Information Services and Systems A Search Strategy Price dynamics in the housing market in China and UK: a study using regression analysis Concept 1Concept 2Concept 3Concept 4 Price dynamicsHousing marketRegression analysisChina /UK Can you think of alternative search terms? Think of broader terms, narrower terms, related terms and synonyms.

Information Services and Systems A Search Strategy Price dynamics in the housing market in China and UK: a study using regression analysis Concept 1Concept 2Concept 3Concept 4 Price dynamicsHousing marketRegression analysisChina /UK Price volatilityHousing pricesLinear regressionChinese Price varianceHouse pricesStatistical analysisUnited Kingdom Price stabilityReal estate pricesMathematical models Great Britain

Information Services and Systems Effective search tips to get more relevant results Combine terms using AND, OR, NOT Use phrase search Use the truncation symbol Use the wildcard symbol

Information Services and Systems Boolean Operators AimBoolean OperatorSearch ExamplesRetrieval Formula To narrow your search results AND Housing prices AND regression analysis Only retrieves records containing all terms To broaden your search results OR Regression analysis OR linear regression Price volatility OR price variance Retrieves records containing either one or more terms To exclude a term from your search NOTtaxation NOT income Wales NOT “New South Wales” Excludes records containing the second term

Information Services and Systems The Phrase Search Examples: “regression analysis” “Bank of England” “United Kingdom

Information Services and Systems Truncation symbol * Entrepreneur* Entrepreneur Entrepreneurs Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurial

Information Services and Systems Wildcard symbol ? Globali?ation GlobalizationGlobalisation

Information Services and Systems Choosing the right search tool: where to start You can use iFind Research to: To locate journal articles if you have the full reference To search for articles on a topic Select & access key databases & resources for your topic

Information Services and Systems Free! Access via Library Subscription Access via Library Subscription Everything published on your topic Not everything will be available Full Text!

Information Services and Systems No Full Text Access – what can I do? Document Supply Services – books and journal articles can be obtained from the British Library for you Visiting other libraries – SCONUL Access scheme –nearly all UK university libraries take part.SCONUL Access scheme

Information Services and Systems Key databases EBSCO Business Source Complete and ProQuest Business Collection Journal articles on business and economics Country reports Product reviews Industry reports and market research

Information Services and Systems Key database Web of Science via Web of Knowledge Useful for: Carrying out research across disciplines For example: economics of sport economics of manufacturing and technology Economics of arts and culture

Information Services and Systems Next week... We will cover... Statistics & Datasets Company Financial information

Information Services and Systems Need help? Just ask!