This document provides guidance on conducting a literature search and research for an academic essay. It outlines 4 steps: 1) planning and preparing the search, 2) using databases and resources to find information, 3) adapting and refining searches using keywords and Boolean operators, and 4) managing references and generating bibliographies using manual methods, Microsoft Word references, or bibliographic software like EndNote. Key tips include thinking of all relevant keywords, using quotation marks for phrases, AND/OR operators to narrow or broaden searches, and wildcard characters to replace letters in search terms.

1. Ms. Hansini Thedchanamoorthy
SKL1233: Writing for Academic Purposes (FIB)

2.  Step 1 - Plan and prepare a literature
search
 Step 2 - Use databases and subject
specific resources to find information
 Step 3 – Adapt & refine your searches
 Step 4 - Manage your references &
generate bibliographies

3.  My essay question / research topic:
 What do I want to find out?
 Looking at all possible angles, think
about all the keywords that matter in
the following image

5. Topic: “In the avant-garde films of the 1920s,
everything we see, including the human
being, is subservient to rhythm & movement.”

6.  Step One: Think about your own
research topic & related concepts
and write down the keywords that
you need to search for.
 What resources should you use?

8.  Step 2: Select the resources or types
of resources you think you would need
to use to carry out your research
 How do I carry out searches to find
information on my topic?

9. Narrow your search using AND
E.g. "avant-garde AND film"
*Useful if you have too
many results
Results
containing
AVANT-GARDE
Results
containing
BOTH
TERMS
Results
containing
FILM
ie. only brings back results where all the words searched for
are included somewhere in the title, summary and/or full-text

10. Broaden your search using OR
e.g. role OR function
*useful if you have
too few results
ie. brings back results where any the words searched for are
included somewhere in the title, summary and/or full-text

11.  As well as searching for alternative terms, you
can use wildcard characters ($ ? * -) to replace
letters in search terms or to truncate a term:
 Examples:
 theat* - finds theatre, theater, theatrical,
etc.
 wom*n - finds women, woman.
 NB: Help pages in the online resources will
explain which character is used as the
wildcard

12. “À la recherche du temps perdu”
“French New Wave”
Use quotation (speech) marks to search for phrases where word
need to appear next to each other (e.g. specific terminology, title
of books / films, names & places).

13.  Step three: think about how you will
combing keywords and enter your
search queries in your selected e-
resources (adjusting terms as you
need to)

14.  Now that I have found information on
my topic, how do I know that it is what
I want and good quality material?

15. Do you have
enough / too
much
information?
Is it relevant to
your research?
Does it
answer the
whole
question?
Is the information
current / within
the date you
require
Do you need to
review your
underlying
research
question?

16.  Now that I have the information
(books, chapters, journal articles,
webpages, etc.) that I need, how do I
manage & reference them?
You may have a lot of references and research
materials to keep track of!

17. 1. Manually on record cards
 This system may still work well for short essays. You can easily sort the cards
into the order you need, but you will need to be able to transcribe the details
accurately into your bibliography.
2. Using the References feature in Microsoft Word
 A facility in Microsoft Word lets you add references to a document and then
create a bibliography at the end of the text. This may be sufficient for smaller
pieces of work, but for more significant assignments such as dissertations
consider using EndNote or another blbiographic management package. Full
instructions on using this facility are in the Microsoft Word 2013 References
and bibliography guide available via the link below.
3. Using the EndNote bibliographic management software
 This allows you to:
 download references from databases and store them in EndNote
 enter references manually into your EndNote library
 store references together with your own notes and comments
 insert citations in the text of your Word document and automatically construct your
bibliography at the end of your work

18.  Step four: save the results that you
need (references, abstracts, URL links,
full text) and organize these so that
you can find them when you need
them & reference them in your
assignments