Dr. Logan Rath's Search Builder

Step 1 — Research question

What do I do? Type your research question.

Why? This page will help you decide which keywords are most important and then create an complex search string.

Step 2 — Select keywords from your research question

What do I do? Look at your research question and drag the most important 2-3 words down into their own boxes. You can drag multiple words into the same box if they're the same part of your idea.

Why? When searching a database you can't use full sentences. This means we have to reduce the entire research question into the most important words or concepts.

Words from your question (drag these)

Keyword boxes (drop words here)

Tip: If a keyword should be multiple words, drop more than one word into the same box (they will join with a space) and they'll appear as that keyword in Step 3.

Step 3 — Add synonyms

What do I do? For each keyword row, add synonyms on the right (press Enter or type a comma).

Why? Using synonyms will increase your chances of finding the best sources.

Keywords & synonyms

Step 4 — Final Boolean string

What do I do? Review and copy the list of keywords below. Then, press the copy button and paste into the search field in Library Search or a specific library database.

Final Search String

Your final search string will appear here.

This is just to get you started. You may wish to change your add, remove, or change specific words after you see the results. Don't forget to limit to peer-reviewed/scholarly articles in the last 10 years.