How to do a literature search

Emma Coonanemc35@cam.ac.uk

What is a literature search?

Searching for (chiefly) published work about a topic of your choice

Aiming to get a sound grasp of your topic and its context

Joining the academic dialogue

1. Where to look

Your sources

Books - Newton (including eBooks)

Journals* - Newton; ejournals@cambridge

* but you have to know (and search by) the journal title, not the journal article title

Search by journal title on Newton

… and on ejournals@cambridge

Your sources

journal articles book chapters conference papers Festschriften contributions reports reviews

… ?

What is a citation database?

Began as online indexes of journal articles

Expanded to contain other document types

Evolved in some cases into storage archives

May contain, or link through to, full text

Not comprehensive

Explore your subject area

2. How to look

Thinking about your topic

Napoleon OR Nelson (either name)

Napoleon AND Nelson (both names)

Napoleon NOT brandy (excluded word)

“Napoleon Bonaparte” (as a phrase)

Thinking about your topic

Trafalgar

= (naval OR sea OR maritime OR marine)AND

(battle OR conflict OR combat OR action …)

Wildcards and truncation: ? and *

? replaces a character ‘Wom?n’ finds ‘woman’ or ‘women’ ‘Globali?ation’ finds British or American spelling

* replaces any number of characters (including zero)

‘Pig*’ finds ‘pig’, ‘pigs’, ‘pigmy’, ‘pigment’ ... ‘Transfer*’ finds ‘transfer’, ‘transfers’, ‘transferable’,

‘transferability’ …

Search exercise

1. Go to www.lib.cam.ac.uk/electronicresourcesand find the SCOPUS database

2. Search for material published from 2005 onwards on sustainable transport, with particular reference to cycling

Check for links to full-text

Cupples, J., Ridley, E. Towards a heterogeneous environmental responsibility: Sustainability and cycling fundamentalism (2008) Area, 40 (2), pp. 254-264.

Cahill, M. Why the u-turn on sustainable transport? (2007) Capitalism, Nature, Socialism, 18 (4), pp. 90-103.

Search exercise

1. Return to www.lib.cam.ac.uk/electronicresourcesand find Web of Knowledge

2. Search for material on cyberbullying among adolescents

3. Where to start?

Start here …

www.lib.cam.ac.uk/electronicresources/

… or here ...

Help and feedback

Slides and handouts at www.lib.cam.ac.uk/Courses/

Evaluation forms

E-mail: user-education@lib.cam.ac.uk