Preparing for Success

Use Boolean operators AND, OR

• Use AND to combine different concepts, e.g. Art AND community.
• Use OR with keyword synonyms and related terms, e.g. (mobile phones OR cell phones).

Use  truncation (the * symbol),  to search the different forms of a word simultaneously, e.g. sustain* will find results containing sustain, sustains, sustainable, sustainability, sustaining and sustained.

Use phrases search by placing double quotation marks " - " around two or more words, e.g. “climate change”. This technique will ensure your results only contain the exact phrase.

This tool is designed to help you create a search string using Boolean search operators. Add your key concepts and synonyms then click the 'create a search string' button. The resulting search string can be copied and pasted into a database search box or the Library search box.

Copy and paste the above search string into a search box

The Search Strategy Builder was developed by the University of Arizona Libraries and is used under a Creative Commons License.

When you are searching, always remember to set Google Scholar preferences - this means that you will be able to directly access any articles/journals that the SCU Library has subscribed to.