are available directly in the library. Usually you will want to search more than one database to find all relevant literature on your topic. When you use one of the databases listed in Table 4.2, you can simply enter your key terms into the main search box. A better strategy is to use the "Advanced Search” feature to help you search for documents that meet specific criteria. Here are a few tips that we use when searching a database. You can refer to the example “Advanced Search" screenshot in Figure 4.2 to see how each of the tips was applied in a search for articles about violence and weapon possession in middle schools through the ERIC Web site (www.eric.ed.gov)
Use multiple key terms, but not too many. Two or three broad key terms(as shown in Figure 4.2) can help you identify literature clearly related to your topic, One key word that is too general (such as “violence” )can get you thousands of hits! Using too many key terms or terms that are very specific (such as "bring a knife to school”) may cause you to get too few hits and miss many good documents.
Use “logic” terms to combine multiple key words. Most database searches will let you use logic terms to combine key words in different ways. Consider the following: The word “AND” means that two (or more) words must appear within a document to meet the search criteria. For example, the search in Figure 4.2 will only identify literature that includes the terms violence AND middle school. The word "OR" means that at least one of the terms must appear in a document. For example, a document will satisfy the search criteria shown in Figure 4.2 if it has either the term weapon or gun, but it does not have to have both words. Use quote marks to search for an exact phrase. By putting the words “middle school” in quote, as in Figure 4.2, it requires a match to that exact phrase. This can reduce the number of extra hits that could occur for other uses of the word middle (such as an article about children in the middle of their siblings)
Focus on recent literature. The purpose of a literature review is to document the current state of knowledge about a topic. Therefore, consider limiting your search to