OARE Module 2: Searching Strategies

This document outlines a practical workflow for effective literature searching, from framing a focused question to applying results. It shows how to identify main concepts, map synonyms and variants, and choose appropriate sources across tertiary, secondary, and primary materials. It demonstrates building queries with Boolean logic—expanding with OR, narrowing with AND, and using NOT cautiously—plus phrase/proximity search, truncation, wildcards, field limits, language filters, and relevancy ranking. It contrasts general web search with Google Scholar for scholarly discovery and notes access pathways through indexing services. It stresses iterative refinement, saving searches and alerts, managing citations, and evaluating web content using accuracy, authority, objectivity, currency, coverage, and design/navigation.