Library Tutorial - Research Strategy - Finding, Evaluating, and Citing Information

Finding Information

1. The Information Resources (Module III) module which follows will introduce you to the wide variety of sources you can consult in order to find information on your topic. The resources you choose to utilize in your own research will depend both on the subject you are researching and where you are in the search process.

2. In Searching Electronic Databases (Module V) and Internet Resources (Module VIII) you will discover how to locate these Information Resources and get an idea of how much information exists on your topic. You will also be shown how to use databases to find additional synonyms for a topic, a process you can use in your own research that will suggest new approaches to your topic and enable you to refine your search.

Evaluating Information

In every search you need to go through the process described in Evaluating Information Resources (Module IX) to see if the sources you have selected for inclusion in your research are accurate and reliable. If not, you need to discard them, which will affect your search strategy.

Citing Information

A very crucial part of any search strategy is recording where you got each bit of information you use or refer to. Citing Sources (Module VII) module describes how to do this. It also discusses the legal and ethical ramifications of plagiarizing or stealing ideas where correct credit has not been given.

The finding, evaluating and citing of information search strategy is described as a linear process. One of the difficulties about conducting a research project is that it is not always a linear project. Often it is circular in nature. In a good search, the strategy may be refined several times.