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Database Search Term
A database search term is a specific word or phrase entered into a computer interface to retrieve relevant records from an academic database. Because databases contain millions of records, users often need to experiment with different combinations and specificities of search terms to narrow down their results to highly relevant articles.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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Database Search Term
Database Index Term
Accessing Full-Text Research Literature
Academic Database Keyword
Within an academic database, what information is typically contained in an individual publication's record?
In psychological research, academic databases use specific components within an article's record to help researchers organize and find information. Match the following components of an academic database record with their correct descriptions.
A psychology student is reviewing an academic database record for a study on 'prosocial behavior.' Sequence the following components of the record based on the order they should be used to accomplish these three research goals in sequence: 1) Summarize the study's results, 2) Find more articles categorized under the same official subject headings, and 3) Locate the earlier research that the authors referenced.
Analyzing the 'Bibliography' section of an academic database record allows a researcher to determine a study's theoretical foundations even when the 'Keywords' section does not match the researcher's specific search terms.
In an individual record representing a scholarly publication, which component contains a list of the other works cited by the author?
Within an academic database, an individual publication's record is intended to serve as a complete replacement for the original work, providing all the same information so that a researcher never needs to access the full-text article.
A psychology student is using an academic database to find sources for a paper on 'emotional regulation in adolescents.' Match each specific research need the student encounters to the component of the academic database record that would best address it.
A psychology researcher searches an academic database for articles on 'bystander intervention' and notices that some records appear in the results even though this exact phrase does not appear anywhere in their abstracts or author-provided keywords. The most likely explanation is that professional database indexers assigned _____ to these records—standardized terms that ensure consistent categorization of content regardless of the specific language an individual author chooses to use.
A psychology student has located an academic database record for a journal article and must decide whether the article is rigorous and relevant enough to include in a literature review on 'mindfulness-based stress reduction.' Arrange the following evaluation steps in the order that reflects the most efficient and defensible approach for judging the article's suitability, from the first check performed to the final inclusion decision.
A researcher is evaluating a database record to decide if a study on 'Memory Retrieval' is rigorous enough for their research project. If the author-provided 'Keywords' are too vague to be useful, the researcher can still judge the study's research design and findings by analyzing the _____ section, which provides a condensed overview of the entire publication.
In the context of academic databases used for psychological research, define what an individual database record is and identify the typical components of publication information and content descriptors that it contains.
Based on the typical components of an academic database record, explain how Jordan should use the record's components to comprehend the article's relevance and describe how Jordan can use the bibliography section to expand their literature search.
Imagine you have found a seminal journal article on 'cognitive restructuring' in an academic database and want to trace the theoretical roots and previous empirical studies that the authors built upon. How would you apply your knowledge of an academic database record to locate these specific source materials?
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Database Thesaurus
What is a database search term?
Arrange the steps a researcher would take to refine their use of database search terms, starting from an initial broad inquiry and moving toward a focused set of results.
A psychology student is using an academic database to find sources for a literature review. Match each specific research objective with the most effective database search terms to retrieve highly relevant records while filtering out irrelevant ones.
A psychology researcher analyzes their search results for the term 'stress' and finds thousands of records spanning from 'post-traumatic stress disorder' to 'cellular stress' to 'economic stress.' True or False: Based on the broad diversity of these results, the researcher can conclude that 'stress' is currently acting as a search term with high specificity for a study focused on PTSD.
Researchers often need to experiment with different combinations and specificities of search terms because academic databases contain millions of records.
A student searching a psychology database for a paper on 'the impact of sleep on memory' finds that the broad search term 'memory' returns millions of records. Why would experimenting with a more specific phrase, such as 'sleep deprivation and spatial memory,' be the most appropriate next step in the research process?
A psychology researcher evaluates their database search strategy for a project on 'the impact of prenatal stress on infant temperament.' They judge the search term 'stress' as being an inadequate choice for this specific literature review. This evaluative judgment is based on the fact that the term 'stress' lacks sufficient _____ to filter out millions of unrelated records, such as those concerning engineering or plant biology.
A psychology student is searching PsycINFO for sources for different research projects. Match each problematic search situation to the most appropriate corrective action based on how database search terms work.
A student searches PsycINFO using only the term 'memory' and retrieves hundreds of thousands of records covering neuroscience, clinical disorders, educational psychology, and animal cognition. She analyzes this result and concludes: 'Because a single broad term matches records across too many unrelated topics, I need to experiment with different _____ of search terms to narrow my results to highly relevant articles on my specific topic.'
A researcher wants to find articles on 'cognitive behavioral therapy for childhood anxiety disorders' using an academic database. Arrange the following actions in the order that best represents a principled, evaluative approach to developing an effective search term strategy, from first to last.
Define what a database search term is and state the primary reasons why researchers must experiment with different combinations and levels of specificity when using them to search academic databases.
Based on your comprehension of database search terms, explain why Marcus retrieved so many irrelevant records and decide what adjustments he should make to his search terms to retrieve highly relevant articles.
Apply your knowledge of database search terms to design an initial search strategy for a student who wants to find research on 'how social media usage relates to adolescent depression.' What specific search terms and strategy should they use to avoid retrieving millions of general records?