Identifying keywords will help you find the most relevant information. For example, if you were researching bats, you might also want to search "Chiroptera" which is the scientific name.
When searching bats, we found articles about baseball bats. When we searched Chiroptera, we found articles only about the animal.
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Searching Bats
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Searching Chiroptera
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Other examples:
| Search term | Possible Keywords |
| United States | American, U.S.A. |
| Anxiety | Mental Health, Self Care |
| Global Warming | Climate Change, Sustainable Development, Conservation |
Start by viewing the Background Research page. Use those first resources to help you find different keywords for your search.
Utilize reference resources like Britannica. Read the articles and look for additional keywords.
For an article about conservation, we found several keywords in the first few sentences: biodiversity, ecosystems, specific extinction.
When searching for more information, the databases provide keywords in the subject line of the article page.
In Ebsco (Explora or Academic Search Premier), locate an article and notice the subject headings (see image).
Example:
Mia is starting a paper on the opioid epidemic. When she types this term into a database, she finds many different keywords that relate to her topic.
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