Boolean Operators
Boolean operators are commands that you can utilize while researching in online databases to yield different sets of results. The most common Boolean operators are AND, OR, and NOT. Use these phrases to combine search terms that will narrow or broaden results.
Check out this example from the Library of Congress page Boolean Operators and Nesting.
A tip from the Library of Congress: "Use Boolean operators and nesting to search for combinations of words or phrases. Enter Boolean operators (i.e., AND, OR, NOT) in either uppercase or lowercase when searching."
Search Limiters
After searching for articles and other media, you may find that you have too many results to effectively peruse through. When this happens, you can use a tool called a "search limiter." Search limiters act as a filtering device for the results on databases so that you can more easily find relevant and appropriate sources. They often include options like Availability, Resource Type, Subject, Language, Creation Date, and Author/Creator, among others.
Check out this example from the Northwestern University Libraries page on Advanced Research Strategies: Search Limiters.
A tip from the Ohio University Library: "Search limiters (sometimes called Filters) are powerful ways to focus your search results so that you don't have to look through lots of irrelevant items to find what you're looking for. For example, many databases include items in foreign languages. If you only want English-language sources, you can use a search limiter to eliminate all other languages. Or if you only want books or only want videos or some other type of material ... or items published within a certain timeframe."
