Controlled vocabulary (CV) is agreed upon vocabulary that most accurately describes a reading level, age range, subject, genre, etc., and is then applied (as metadata) to a searchable record. CV is used in libraries, Google and other search engines, word processing software, etc.
By harnessing basic CV terms to search your subject, you can unlock better results and save time.
There are a number of ways you can combine your keywords. You can also search for phrases by enclosing them in quotation marks. Expand your search by looking for different forms of words using truncation.
| Boolean Operators | Phrase Searching | Truncation |
|
AND narrows searches and is used to join dissimilar terms. OR broadens searches and is used to join similar terms. You can use AND and OR together. Examples
|
To search for specific phrases, enclose them in quotation marks. The database will search for those words together in that order. Examples
|
Truncate a word in order to search for different forms of the same word. Many databases use the asterisk * as the truncation symbol. Examples
|
Many databases tag citations with hyperlinked subjects intended to help you identify relevant sources. Think of subject terms and headings as hashtags that can point you to more sources with the same tags. Click on one to discover other similarly tagged items or use the headings to give you ideas for terms you can try in a keyword search.
| Melvyl | PubMed | PsycINFO | Academic Search Complete |
|---|---|---|---|
|
When you find a useful book in Melvyl, the library catalog, look at the record's Library of Congress Subject Headings. Example The subject headings for the book Pushout: The Criminalzation of Black Girls in Schools are: |
PubMed uses the Medical Subject Headings for its subject terms. PubMed automatically maps your terms to existing MeSH terms. You can also look up terms in PubMed by changing the search to MeSH in the dropdown menu. Example The MeSH for childhood obesity is pediatric obesity. Video |
PsycINFO uses the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms for its subject terms. In PsycINFO (ProQuest), you can also look up terms. In the database, find Thesaurus at the top of the window. Video |
In Academic Search Complete, you can also look up terms. In the database, find Subject Terms at the top of the window. Video |
|
Date Limiters |
Fields & Filters / Limiters |
Times Cited / Cited By |
|
Most databases let you limit citations by the Date of Publication. Historical Abstracts is an exception. Look for the Historical Period section on the main search page in Historical Abstracts to limit by era in which an event took place. The sort default is often Relevance, though the science databases often defer to Most Recent. Especially with large results list, you may wish to sort by Relevance and then limit by Date. |
Databases normally include fields and filters to help you narrow your results. Use fields to target where you want to search for your terms, e.g. in the title, in the abstract, in full-text etc. Use filters to exclude items from your search results. Example Click this link to see what fields were searched (top) & what filters are available (left side) in Academic Search Complete. |
Web of Science & Google Scholar are examples of databases that provide the number of times an article has been cited and who has cited it. Videos
|
Sometimes, rather than searching for information on a topic, you might be interested in looking for a specific article. There are a few ways you can find items based on a citation.
| Article Level Strategies | Journal Level Strategies |
|
Look for the journal title in the eJournal finder. Search for the journal title in the Journals tab on the library home page search box. See if the journal is available. Is the date you need available? If so, drill down to the correct volume and issue number. |
Video
Discover how to locate a known article through Google Scholar or Melvyl (UC Merced Library, 1:52).
"picture books for children" AND
preschool AND fiction
children's stories
preschool AND "spanish language"
chapter books for children
juvenile fiction
primary
middle grade
young adult AND fiction
juvenile fiction
adolescent