Use fewer search terms. Look for words not unique to your topic that you could cut from your search string.
OR Use OR to link synonyms, so you get articles where the authors used other terms to describe the same concept.
(law OR legal)
* Use an asterisk to find articles using any of the variants of the same root word.
ethic* = ethic, ethics, ethical
Use more inclusive search terms.
Move from a specific philosopher to a school of thought - too few results from Lyotard, try postmodern*
More general terms - too few results from beauty, try aesthetics
Search as many possible sources at once by using Google Scholar.
To get fewer results, narrow your search.
" " Use quotation marks to find exact phrases, when you need words next to each other in precise sequence to have the meaning you intend.
"property dualism"
"possible worlds"
Add more concepts to your search. Consider the who, what, when, where, why, and how.
Use narrower, more specific concepts or aspects of your original topic.
theism > pantheism
Search fewer sources, one top journal at a time.
Finding Books on Shelves
CSU Resource Sharing
Is the book you want already checked out? Or perhaps the library does now already own a copy? Watch this video to learn how to use OneSearch to request an item available through another CSU library.
