Transcript Presented by Megan Lowe Coordinator of Public Services/Associate Professor Communication Liaison Librarian.

Presented by Megan Lowe
Coordinator of Public Services/Associate Professor
Communication Liaison Librarian
RESEARCH AS PROCESS
To approach any research project without preparation is like deciding to make a cake
without knowing what kind of cake you want to make and without knowing if you
even have the right ingredients. This cake is likely not going to turn out the way
you want it to (and there’s nothing sadder than cake-related disappointment).
When conducting research, you need to have idea of what you need or want to find
before you start looking. You need to do a little plotting and planning in order to
make the most of the process and in order to save yourself time, frustration, and
unpleasant surprises (like realizing that the topic you picked is not wellresearched AT ALL).
Therefore, the first step in the research process is to make sure you have a topic in
mind before you start. If it’s a little broad, that’s okay, but if it’s too broad, you’re
going to have problems. Make sure you have a manageable topic before you start.
RESEARCH AS PROCESS
A manageable topic is invaluable – too broad, and you’ll get too much information
when you start searching.
I know what you’re thinking – “too much information? I need all I can GET!” Trust me,
the first time you get 20,000+ hits (either in the Library’s resources or on the
Internet), you’ll start sweating and realizing that the world is VERY FULL of
information, and not all of it is relevant to your needs. You don’t want everything;
you want what will serve your research needs.
It is important to understand that there are all kinds of information available to you,
through both the Library and the Internet, but (1) not all resources are created
equal, and (2) not all resources are appropriate for the kind of research you will
be doing in college.
UNDERSTANDING RESOURCES
There are different kinds of resources:
•
Books
•
Individual chapters/essays in books
•
Articles
 Newspaper articles
 Magazine articles
 Journal articles
•
Government documents
•
Websites and web documents (which may also be the aforementioned resources)
EVALUATING RESOURCES
Resources generally fall into two categories:
Scholarly
Popular
 Written by experts
 Written by journalists
 Focuses on a particular field, topic, or
discipline
 Usually covers broad topics, fields, issues, or
disciplines
 Intended for others in that field or career  Usually appeals to a wide audience
 “Proper” language, technical vocabulary
 Everyday language, slang, even profanity
 No ads
 LOTS of ads
 RESEARCH ORIENTED
 NOT RESEARCH ORIENTED
JOURNALS are scholarly.
NEWSPAPERS and MAGAZINES are popular.
ACTIVITY BREAK! LET’S DO THIS!
EVALUATING RESOURCES: INTERNET EDITION
 Authority--who created the web page? Are they experts? What are their credentials? Do
they provide contact information?
 Accuracy--where did they get their information? Are the facts verifiable through another
source? Do they list a bibliography of citations from where they obtained their
information?
 Coverage--how much of the topic does the resource cover? Does it attempt to cover all
or most of the aspects, or is it vague?
 Currency--when was the site last updated? Are the facts on the site up-to-date? Is the
information current?
 Objectivity--does the site have biases? Is the information presented in such a way to
allow the viewer to make his/her own judgment, or does the site try to persuade you to
adopt its viewpoint? What is the purpose of the site?
More about evaluating Internet resources can be found at:
http://www.ulm.edu/library/faqfiles/webevaluate.htm
THE LIBRARY’S RESOURCES
The great thing about the ULM Library’s resources is that the vast majority of them are
scholarly – in other words, they are most assuredly appropriate for the kind of
research you will do during your time in this class and in college.
When you start with the Library’s resources, the pool of resources you are drawing from
is already quality-controlled, which is ultimately what distinguishes scholarly and
popular resources: the amount of quality control.
When you start with the Internet, you are not guaranteed that quality. Anybody can say
just about anything they want on the Internet; there is no true supervisory body who
is moderating or fact-checking content. This is the danger of the Internet.
Starting with the Library’s resources is just good common sense. You may think it’s
more time-consuming or harder to use, but that’s not true. This presentation will
show you just how easy it can be to find what you’re looking for.
And when you start with quality resources, you are more likely
to produce quality work. A house built with sub-par materials
and cheap labor is not likely to be as enduring or beautiful as
one built with quality materials and dedicated labor.
THE BEST WAY TO SEARCH: KEYWORD SEARCH
You need to develop keywords which are the tools you use to search the Library’s
resources (and the Internet, too)
Creating a list of keywords can help you further refine your topic – it can serve as a
brainstorming technique, too!
Keywords represent the most important concepts within your topic
You don’t use them alone; you use them with operators: AND, OR, and NOT
Keyword + operator = search string
Search strings are your BEST FRIENDS for finding the best possible resources
The better your keywords, the better your results!
ACTIVITY TIME AGAIN
LET’S TAKE A LOOK….
USING THE INTERNET FOR RESEARCH
Starting with Google is a bad idea because it gives you EVERYTHING, and remember:
you DON’T want everything – you want scholarly stuff
Among its many products/search options is Google Scholar - Google Scholar is a
scholarly-oriented search engine which searches for scholarly documents such as
articles, books, book chapters, and reports
The catch is that you are NOT always guaranteed access to those resources
If you wish to find and use reliable websites, then Google is the place to start, but
bear in mind the criteria we discussed earlier – you need to carefully evaluate the
website you’re thinking about using, to make sure it meets the criteria
A good rule of thumb is to stick with sites whose urls end in gov, edu, and org
Be very mindful of those criteria – websites can be very tricky, especially org sites
Let me show you what I mean….
LIBRARY VS. INTERNET
Please note: there are some legitimate pros to using the Library’s resources as
compared to the Internet
As you saw in the demonstration, many of our databases will create citations for you,
something that Google does not do
Google Scholar can create MLA, APA, and Chicago citations for you, but they are
frequently wrong, including missing information
The Library’s resources have filters which are much easier to use and edit as you go
as compared to Google’s filters
When you start with the Library’s resources you are starting with a collection of
resources that have already undergone much of the evaluation we’ve discussed –
you don’t have to think about evaluating the resources the way you would if you
start with Google
GETTING IT TOGETHER
And most importantly, remember: if you need help…
…JUST ASK A LIBRARIAN FOR HELP!
That’s what we’re here for – we want to help YOU!
All you have to do is ASK.
(Google can’t say that.)
Q & A TIME!
FYI
ULM Library URL: http://www.ulm.edu/library
Presentation URL: http://www.ulm.edu/~lowe/COMM3070.pptx
My website: http://www.ulm.edu/~lowe
Son of Citation Machine: http://www.citationmachine.net/
My email: [email protected]
Librarian =