1. Searching the Library for Resources
Louise Fletcher Academic librarian - SBE

2. University Library Resources available:
Library catalogue plus & select databases
Marketing reports
Journals
Company information
Newspapers
Books you would otherwise have to buy!

3. You’ve been given an assignment
What next?....
Break up concepts
Identify key words
Check terminology, Americanisms
Branding?

4. Library Databases available
Business & management databases:
Business source complete – useful for business related research
Emerald - Elselvier?
Science Direct – useful for psychology and other science based subjects
Marketing reports: Mintel
UK company information: FAME
Newspapers: Nexis
British Standards Publications
E- journals

5. Keyword search
What could you search for?...

6. Keywords General Specific Spelling Truncation & boolean logic
American
General
Spelling
Alternative terms
Related terms
misspelling
Truncation & boolean
logic
Abbreviations
?, *
ATM
‘AND’, ‘OR’
Proximity searching

7. Using ?/* for alternative spellings
organi?ation (organisation/organization)
organi?ation* (organisational/organizational)
behavio*r (behaviour/behavior)
behavio?r* (behavioural/behavioral?

8. Differences between key types of info
Book
Journal
Internet
Quality controlled
No regulation
Usually only published once
Published several times a year
Can be published at any time
Material of a more general kind
Has articles of a specialised nature
Material of a general kind
Forms the basis of your studies
Use more often as you progress with your studies
Can be useful but must be treated with caution

9. Internet searching – tips
Avoid Wikipedia and equivalents!
Author: heard of them?
Web address: recognise it? Reliable?
Company/institution logo? Check contact details
Bias & currency
check information/author against other sources
In doubt? Check with an academic or simply do not use!
Avoid Wikipedia and equivalents - anyone can write/edit an entry – mention Fitz’s Warfarin example

10. Basically……..
Don’t rely on Google and Wikipedia Adopt a more academic/strategic approach to web searching You will get better marks in coursework if you find higher quality information

11. Remember to…
Consider carefully the most appropriate web tool for the task in hand
Consider alternative words and phrases you might use for searching
Evaluate and apply judgement to each item retrieved

12. Start searching…..
Google? Google scholar? Library database? (who and what do you trust?)

13. Search results Check for: Number of citations
New paper? Possibly cutting edge research?
Analyse search results critically
Quick scan read – intro and conclusion
Download for full read at a later date

14. Analyse one of your results

15. Contact details & useful sites on LEARN
Louise Fletcher – Always available for help with searching for resources/quick refreshers
Doing a literature search -
Using electronic information -