Film & Media Studies: Keyword Searching

OBJECTIVES

• To get a small group of relevant records.
• To locate sources that will enhance your understanding and analysis of one or more aspects of your complex research question and topic statement.

STRATEGIES

• Keyword (start with) vs. subject searching (end with for efficient and more relevant results)
• Use keywords that describe what you are looking for.
• Be specific.
• Do multiple searches, using different combinations of keywords.
• Synonyms are your friends; there are many ways to say the same thing.
• Bibliographic records and reference books are good sources of keywords you haven't thought of.