Please read the Unit 1 Content before participating in this discussion. It will help you to get acquainted with the UMGC library and other online resources. It will also introduce Boolean searching. One of the shifts we make in LIBS 150 is from searching words to being intentional about the key concepts behind the words.
This exercise will help you to put what you are learning to work as we get started on our first major assignment, our Search Strategy, due at the end of Unit 2. Download the assignment, choose a research topic from the list provided, and begin working through the first four steps. This discussion gives me a snapshot of your work and allows you to receive feedback and make adjustments to your responses before you submit the assignment for grading. By the time you complete the Week 1 and Week 2 discussions, your Search Strategy assignment will be mostly complete!
Note that you will not be writing a research paper for this class. Instead we focus on the research process — formulating a Search Strategy in Week 1, searching online and in the Library in Week 2, then evaluating “one good article” in Week 3’s Article Analysis assignment.
Here are the topic we will be choosing from:
The effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on higher education
The effect of supply chain issues on global commerce
The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
The effect of telework on the real estate market
If you would like to propose your own topic, contact me to discuss your idea.
Once you’ve downloaded your assignment and started working, please answer the following questions in your discussion post.
1. What topic did you choose? What key words did you notice as you scoped out your topic? [You are answering Step 1 and Step 2, #2.]
2. A good research question will be open-ended and will narrow the topic in some way. Please share your research question and explain briefly how you developed it. [You are answering Step 2, #3.]
3. What are the key concepts in your research question and what alternative words can you think of for each concept? [You are answering Step 2, # 5 & #7.]
4. Try using simple Boolean logic to create a search statement using your key concepts. If you really want to impress me and your classmates, try an advanced searching technique! (Steps 3 & 4)
5. What do you feel is still unclear to you about creating a search strategy?
Once you have posted, please respond to at least two of your classmates. You will find that some of your classmates will have chosen the same topic as you. What ideas can you share? Offer something concrete — suggestions of where to look, what search terms to use, or ways to narrow/focus their topic.
EXAMPLE
The topic I chose is “The effect of pets on owners’ mental health”. The key words I noticed were mental health, stress relief, and companionship.
The question I used to begin my search is “Does having a pet benefit a person’s mental health?” I chose to word it like this because it includes the idea from the chosen topic, and opens the search to different opinions on whether having a pet is beneficial to a person’s health.
Key words in my research question were “pet”, “benefit” and “mental health”. I could reword my question to say “Do people who own pets have better mental health?”
pets OR pet ownership AND mental health OR emotional well being
Nothing is unclear yet but I will always ask questions as soon as I get confused so I can gain further clarification.1
My Search Strategy for [Topic]
[Your name]
University of Maryland Global Campus
LIBS 150 [section number]
[Instructor Name]
[Due Date]
My Search Strategy for [Topic]
STEP 1: Choose one of the selected topics below for this assignment. Or, if you are currently taking another class, you could use a topic from it. If you would like to propose your own topic, discuss your idea with your professor. State which topic you’ve chosen.
Topics:
The effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on higher education
The effect of supply chain issues on global commerce
The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
The effect of telework on the real estate market
Type your answer here:
STEP 2: Fill in the table below as a starting point for your search. Please refer to the materials in Week 1, including the “Identifying an Information Need” learning resource and the example on “climate change” under the “Creating a Search Strategy” topic.
Step
Your answers:
1. Write your topic.
2. Use Google or Wikipedia to learn about your topic, narrow your focus, and come up with some key words.
3. Write your research question.
4. Write a preliminary topic statement based on what you know. [You will use research to validate (or revise) this early assumption.]
5. List words or phrases from the topic statement or research question (key concepts) that best describe your topic.
6. Consider dates, geographic locations, and/or other relevant limiting factors to narrow your search.
7. Now find relevant synonyms, or keywords, of the key concepts you listed is step 5.
8. Write different forms of the words or phrases you listed (if any).
STEP 3:
Create a Boolean Search Statement. Now that you have identified some key concepts and keywords, create a search statement on your topic using Boolean operators.
Type it here:
STEP 4: Now, practice your ability to use advanced searching techniques and show what those search terms would look like. We recommend combining nesting, truncation, and phrase searching techniques in a single search statement. Create a search statement using advanced techniques. Be a Boolean ROCK STAR!
Try it here:
STEP 5: Now start your search. Try your search statement with the Library’s
OneSearch tool. Provide a snip (or screenshot) of the results from your search.
Share a “snip” or screenshot of a portion of your initial results here:
STEP 6: Now you will narrow your search.
Try adding a date range and more keywords or search phrases to limit the number of articles your search identifies. Remember that when you get to the evaluation stage, you will appreciate a more focused group of resources. Provide a snip (or screenshot) that shows the results of your revised search.
Type your revised search statement here:
Share a “snip” or screenshot of a 7
My Search Strategy for The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
Ricardo Blackwood
University of Maryland Global Campus
LIBS 150 6379
Sarah Sackett
Jan 24, 2023
My Search Strategy for The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
STEP 1: Choose one of the selected topics below for this assignment. Or, if you are currently taking another class, you could use a topic from it. If you would like to propose your own topic, discuss your idea with your professor. State which topic you’ve chosen.
Topics:
The effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on higher education
The effect of supply chain issues on global commerce
The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
The effect of telework on the real estate market
Type your answer here:
STEP 2: Fill in the table below as a starting point for your search. Please refer to the materials in Week 1, including the “Identifying an Information Need” learning resource and the example on “climate change” under the “Creating a Search Strategy” topic.
Step
Your answers:
1. Write your topic.
The effect of pets on owners’ mental health
2. Use Google or Wikipedia to learn about your topic, narrow your focus, and come up with some key words.
Stress relief, Purpose and mindfulness
3. Write your research question.
How does having a pet improve stress relief
4. Write a preliminary topic statement based on what you know. [You will use research to validate (or revise) this early assumption.]
· Having pets reduce stress and anxiety
5. List words or phrases from the topic statement or research question (key concepts) that best describe your topic.
Mental health
pet owners
stress relief
6. Consider dates, geographic locations, and/or other relevant limiting factors to narrow your search.
Jan 01 2020 to present day
Washington
7. Now find relevant synonyms, or keywords, of the key concepts you listed is step 5.
Mental Health: Psychology and emotional well being
8. Write different forms of the words or phrases you listed (if any).
Stress relief: Anti-depression
Purpose: motivation
STEP 3:
Create a Boolean Search Statement. Now that you have identified some key concepts and keywords, create a search statement on your topic using Boolean operators.
Type it here: mental health or psychology
STEP 4: Now, practice your ability to use advanced searching techniques and show what those search terms would look like. We recommend combining nesting, truncation, and phrase searching techniques in a single search statement. Create a search statement using advanced techniques. Be a Boolean ROCK STAR!
Try it here: effects of pet on owners mental health and psychology of pet owners
STEP 5: Now start your search. Try your search statement with the Library’s
OneSearch tool. Provide a snip (or screenshot) of the results from your search.
Shar
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