Library Research Checklist
Consider the following steps
before you begin your research:
Understand the instructor’s
assignment.
- Has a topic already been assigned or
have you selected a topic?
- What do you already know about the
subject?
- How much information do you need? Is
your assignment a five minute speech or a ten page
paper?
- What kind of information do you need?
Scholarly research or general interest?
Develop the topic and find
background information.
Whether or
not you have chosen a subject, the following resources will
provide you with preliminary information and may yield
additional or related concepts to help you define your
topic.
- General encyclopedias: Encyclopedia
Britannica
- Subject-specific encyclopedias:
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences,
Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, etc. (Most
located in the Reference Collection by subject
area.) Seek assistance at the Information
Desk.
-
Books on your topic can be found through the SIUE Catalog.
- Search the SIUE Catalog by Anyword
Anywhere or By Subject.
- If your search is unsuccessful, try
different words or try searching by words in title. When
books are identified as potential sources of information,
identify and note their subject headings to find more
sources.
- Record the call numbers and retrieve
the books from their locations.
Focus the topic and find current
information.
Journal,
newspaper and magazine articles generally provide the most
up-to-date and focused information on a specific
topic.
- Many indexes and abstracts, both in
electronic and print format, are available to help you locate
articles on a particular subject. Please ask at the
Information Desk for assistance.
-
When using indexes, remember the following tips:
- Be flexible:
Different indexes use different words to describe
subjects. Experiment with synonyms for your subject. For
example, material about the population over age 65 may be
listed under aged, aging, senior citizen, older American,
elderly, geriatrics, and gerontology.
- Be precise: Make
sure to record the complete bibliographic citation of an
article, including the author, title, periodical name,
volume number, page, and date.
- Be organized: Keep
a record of which databases were searched, where specific
citations were found, and which words were used in the
searches.
- Once you have a list of citations, check
SFX or the SIUE Catalog by journal title
for titles owned by the Library. Remember to check what years
the Library owns. Also, determine the availability and
location of the journal.
Adapted from the University of Rhode
Island, http://www.uri.edu/library/guides/general/checklist.html
