We all create information for different purposes and different audiences. Consider who your audience while writing and choosing language and terminology that is most likely to be understood by them will help you improve your ability to communicate effectively.
This technique will also help you while searching for relevant information! When you are searching for information, considering who the author is/could be, why they are creating this information, and who their intended audience is will also help you identify the best place to search and the best words/terminology to use when searching.
Before you begin searching think about what type of information you need to answer your question. Try to picture what type(s) of content are most likely to have the answer to your questions. Compare searching to shopping but for information. If you know you need shoes and you go to a shoe store your are more likely to find shoes. If you go to database or online resource with the type of information you need you are more likely to find relevant resources.
Expert tip: for complicated searches remember to take notes about where you search and what terms you try! If you don't keep try you might find yourself starting from the beginning and repeating your work if you end up working on your search for a long time or over multiple days.
Start with a keyword search, then refine by subject or other facets later.
Building a search query:
Narrow your results:
Citation searching
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