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CORNERSTONE (Pfrommer and Ortega)

Identify Keywords

The keywords you use can have a profound impact on the results of your research. Using the “right” words will speed up the research process, while the “wrong” words can bring to it to a halt.

Before you can begin searching for information, you need to identify keywords related to your topic. Key terminology can be easily be found by scanning:

  • Your research questions
  • Articles found from background research
  • Bibliographies found at the end of books and articles
  • Subject terms that show up under the articles listed in your initial search.

​If you are still struggling:

  • Use a thesaurus to identify synonyms -- try the thesaurus search on this page.
  • Brainstorm keywords with a librarian, your instructor, or a friend.
  • Consider using Twitter or Facebook to ask your friends for synonyms.
 

Explore Your Topic

Credo Reference is a great place to start when you're exploring and refining a research topic. A scholarly alternative to Wikipedia or Google, it's a searchable collection of information from reputable sources such as subject-specific encyclopedias and reference books.

Credo also includes Topic Pages for many common research areas. These comprehensive guides gather background information, mind maps, images, and links to journal articles and other resources, all in one place.

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Create a Mind Map

Credo's Mind Map feature can also help you narrow or broaden your topic or identify additional aspects that you might be interested in learning more about. You can create a mind map like the one below by entering it in the search box and changing the drop-down menu to Mind Map. If you've already started your search, you can always click on the Mind Map tab at the top to switch to that view.