Evaluating your search results is an essential part of scholarly information retrieval. If your search does not work as expected, check the following:
Consider synonyms and alternative terms—don’t stick to just one or two keywords.
Check different spellings and use truncation if needed.
Try broader terms.
Use full-text search.
Verify that you have selected the right databases for your topic.
Instead of phrase searching, try a proximity operator.
Review your search history to identify problem areas.
Add a limiting aspect with AND.
Filter results by peer-reviewed articles, publication year, or material type.
Use narrower concepts and terms.
Utilize the database’s controlled vocabularies (Thesaurus, Subject Headings).
Target your search to title or subject fields.
Try proximity operators or phrase searching instead of AND.
In multidisciplinary databases, limit by subject area.
Start with a relevant “seed” document and use it to find more related material:
Examine the seed document’s reference list.
Check if the authors have published other related works.
Review the terminology used—especially in the title, abstract, and subject headings—for keyword ideas.
Use citation databases (e.g., Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar) to find documents that cite the seed document (Citing documents, Cited by, Times cited).