World Religions: Find Sources

Unlike Google, library databases can't understand an entire sentence. You'll need to break your topic down into the most important ideas: the keywords. Keywords are individual words or short phrases that represent the main ideas in your topic, thesis, or research question. 

Example Question: What are the benefits of religious diversity on social institutions and culture? 

Keywords: benefits, religious diversity, social institutions, culture

After you've identified your main ideas and some keywords to start with, think of additional search terms for each concept. These can be synonyms, related ideas, broader terms, or narrower terms. Since a database will match only what you type, using different terms for similar ideas can help you find more articles. 

Example Search Terms: 

• benefits: Note that this broad term is often difficult to use as a keyword. Instead, identify possible benefits as you find useful sources, and incorporate those ideas into later searches.
• religious diversity: religious identity, interfaith dialogue
• social institutions, culture: art, museums, literature

Click on the research issue you're having below to see tips for addressing it:

I'm Not Finding Enough Sources

I'm Finding Too Many Sources

I'm Finding Irrelevant Sources

None of These Tips Solved My Research Issue

Not Finding Enough Sources

• Type the word OR between related search terms to get results containing either term. Put the related search terms in parentheses.
  • Example: (religious diversity or interfaith) and art and museums
  • Example: government and regulate and (internet or "social media")
  
• Use a truncation character (often the asterisk, *, but it can vary by search tool), which is a symbol added to the root of a word to tell the search tool that you want all forms of that word. 
  • Example: elect* will search for elect, election, elector, electoral, electorate, electing, etc.
• Use a wildcard character (often the hash sign, #, but it can vary by search tool), which is a symbol that replaces any character in a word.
  • Example: wom#n will search for woman or women.

Finding Too Many Sources

• Type the word AND between the main ideas in your search to get results containing all ideas.
  • Example: religious diversity and art and museums
  • Example: government and regulate and internet and "free speech"
  

Finding Irrelevant Sources

• Type the word NOT before a search term that you do not want your search results to contain.
  • Example: election not "united states"
  
• Type quotation marks around a specific phrase to get search results that contain only that exact phrase.
  • Example: "social media"
• Use the search tool's filters to target search results that will meet your needs. You'll find filters on the search results screen. The exact location and filtering options varies by search tool.
  • Example: use a publication date filter to find sources published in the last five years.
  • Example: use a source type filter to find only articles or only videos.

If the options above did not help you find useful results, you may want to:

• change your search terms,
• select a different search tool,
• make your topic broader or narrower, or
• get research help from a librarian.

Research Skills & Tips:

After you've selected your search tool, identified keywords, and fixed research issues, it's time to choose your sources. It is common to get more search results than you will use, so you must evaluate the sources you find to choose the best ones for your research.

Start by scanning the search results to locate sources that fit your research question or need. The search results page will include information about each source, such as the title, year, and abstract, to help you determine its relevance.

Once you've found a source you'd like to use, evaluate its credibility by considering the evidence, source, context, audience, purpose, and execution of the source. Learn more on the Evaluate Information and Fake News guide linked below.

Research Skills & Tips:

Scholarly books are nonfiction books usually based on academic research done by the author or authors. They can contain multiple chapters on different aspects of a particular topic, or they can focus entirely on one concept or idea.

When & Why to Use Scholarly Books:

• You need to understand a complex topic. Books are generally easier to read than journal articles.
• You need very in-depth analysis of a topic.
• You need a broad understanding of one or more topics.
• You need a summary of existing research on a topic.

Search for Books and E-Books on World Religions:

Call Number Areas:

Browse the call number areas starting with BL - BX on the library shelves. For example:

• The Oxford Handbook of Religious Diversity, Call Number BL85 .O94 2011

Research Skills & Tips:

Primary sources are original documents and materials. They may include religious texts, documents relating to a religious institution or organization, letters, diaries, photographs, etc. 

Search for Primary Sources on World Religions:

Research Skills & Tips:

Statistics and data can provide valuable information for research and analysis, but it is important to consider how the data was collected and how it is presented. More tips on evaluating statistics can be found on the Evaluate Sources page, linked above.

Search for Statistics and Data on World Religions:

MC Library has access to streaming videos and audio, as well as DVDs and CDs. Different types of video and audio include documentaries, educational videos, mainstream movies, radio interviews, and podcasts. Additionally, users have access to a variety of images that can be used in their research.

When & Why to Use Videos or Media:

• You need to include an expert's point of view, and a documentary or podcast on your topic includes an interview.
• You're doing a presentation and need to include a visual or audio element.
• You need to learn a concept that is best understood visually.

Search for Videos and Media on World Religions: