Librarian's Guide to Online Searching: Second Edition » (2nd Edition)

SUZANNE S. BELL is the Economics/Data Librarian in the Rush Rhees Library Reference Department at the University of Rochester, and an adjunct faculty member with the Department of Library & Information Studies, SUNY Buffalo.

To succeed as searchers, all librarians require both a basic idea of how databases are put together, and a repository of concepts and techniques to draw upon. With such essentials well in hand, the searcher can plunge into almost any database that comes along and master its intricacies (and idiosyncrasies) in relatively short order. Bell's conversational style, coupled with her Searcher's Toolbox, promises increased flexibility and adaptability. This book will prove a handy guide for librarians in every conceivable information environment and across all levels of experience.

The ability to understand and navigate online environments and databases is fast becoming an essential skill for librarians. Now in a revised and updated edition, this book provides a handy guide for librarians in every conceivable information environment and across all levels of experience.

"Bell's revision of this online searching guide will be invaluable to anyone starting out or looking for a refresher course on this topic. In clear concise language, the author covers everything from Boolean searching to using specific topic-based databases. . . . This easy-to-use manual, written with just a touch of humor and not a drop of condescension, is sure to be embraced by librarians of all skill levels—including the technology challenged. . . . This resource would make an ideal textbook for a library science course on online searching or simply for individuals brushing up on their searching skills."

Preface xiii

Acknowledgments xvii

1 Database Structure For Everyone: Records, Fields, And Indexes 1

Historical Background 1

Indexing and Abstracting Services 1

From Printed Volumes to Databases 3

Database Building Blocks 4

Fields and Records 4

Quick Recap 5

Beyond Fields and Records: Field Indexes 6

Quick Recap 11

Examples of Indexes 11

Exercises and Points to Consider 16

Suggested Reading 17

Notes 17

2 Working With Database The Searcher's Toolkit: Part 1 19

Searcher's Toolkit: Part 1 19

Basic Tool No. 1: Boolean Logic 19

Quick Recap 24

Basic Tool No. 2: Controlled Vocabulary 24

Basic Tool No. 3: Field Searching 26

Terms in the Searching Lexicon 27

Quick Recap 28

Applying the Tools 29

Master File Select: Notes and Search Examples 29

Exercises and Points to Consider 35

Notes 37

3 The Searcher's Toolkit: Part 2 39

Searcher's Toolkit: Part 2 39

Basic Tool No. 4: Proximity Searching 39

Basic Tool No. 5: Truncation 43

Quick Recap 46

Basic Tool No. 6: Limits to Constrain Your Search 46

Basic Tool No. 7: "Pearl Growing": A Useful Search Strategy 46

Quick Recap 48

Your Mental Toolkit 48

Summary and Advice 48

Exercises and Points to Consider 49

Suggested Reading 50

Notes 50

4 Social Science Databases 51

Introduction to Subject Databases 51

Library Literature & Information Science 52

Background and Coverage 52

Notes and Search Examples 52

Working with Results: Mark and Output 60

Quick Recap 61

ERIC via FirstSearch 61

Background and Coverage 61

Notes and Search Examples 62

Working with Results: Mark, Functions, and Output 70

QuickRecap 71

PsycInfo from Ovid 71

Background and Coverage 71

Notes and Search Examples 73

Working with Results: The "Results Manager" 81

Additional Feature: The PsycInfo Thesaurus 81

Quick Recap 81

Exercises and Points to Consider 83

Notes 85

5 Databases For Science And Medicine 87

Medline and PubMed 88

Medline 88

PubMed: More than Medline 93

Introduction to the PubMed Interface 94

Output in Medline and PubMed 100

Getting to the Full Text 101

Quick Recap 101

The Web of Science and the Citation Indexes 102

History of the Citation Indexes 102

Web of Science Content 103

An Index Focused on Citations 103

Additional Differences in Available Fields 104

Searching the Web of Science: Main Search Interface 105

Cited Reference Searching 108

E-mail, Print, Save, or Export Results 115

Advanced Features: Advanced Search and Analyze 117

Quick Recap 118

Exercises and Points to Consider 119

Notes 121

6 Bibliographic Databases 123

WorldCat: The "OPAC of OPACs" 124

Background and Coverage 124

A Tool for Many Parts of the Library 125

Notes and Search Examples 126

Quick Recap 135

WorldCat.org 136

Background: The Path to WorldCat.org 136

Notes and Search Examples 138

Quick Recap 142

Revisiting Your Local OPAC 143

Exercises and Points to Consider 143

Notes 144

7 Humanities Databases 147

America: History and Life 148

Background and Coverage 148

Notes and Search Examples 148

Related Records, Folder, and Output Options 154

Quick Recap 157

MLA International Bibliography 158

Background and Coverage 158

The Marked List and Output 166

Additional Feature: Directory of Periodicals 169

Quick Recap 169

Exercises and Points to Consider 171

Notes 172

8 Numerical Databases 173

Finding Numbers 173

Concepts about Numbers 174

Quick Recap 177

A Comment about Searching for Numbers 177

LexisNexis Statistical 177

Background and Coverage 177

Notes and Search Examples 179

Working with Results: "Tag" and Output 188

Going from LexisNexis Statistical to Web Sites 189

American Factfinder 190

Background and Coverage 190

Notes and Search Examples 190

Bureau of Labor Statistics 195

Pay & Benefits at the Bureau of Labor Statistics 196

Occupation Information at the Bureau of Labor Statistics 199

Quick Recap 200

Numbers and the Reference Interview 201

Exercises and Points to Consider 201

Suggested Readings 202

Notes 202

9 Focus On People 205

Part 1: Information-seeking Behavior 206

Some Theoretical Background on Information Seeking 206

Applied Research on Information-seeking Behavior 208

Quick Recap 213

Part 2: The Reference Interview 213

What Is the Real Question? 214

Question Negotiation in the Reference Interview 216

Beyond the Face-to-Face Reference Interview 220

Why Is the Reference Interview So Important? 222

Quick Recap 222

Exercises and Points to Consider 223

Suggested Readings 223

Notes 223

10 Choosing The Right Resource For The Question 225

Start with the Reference Interview 226

Questions for Databases 226

Why and When to Try a Database 226

Quick Recap 229

Choosing a Database 230

Questions for the Web 232

Personal Uses of the Web 232

Professional Uses of the Web 232

Quick Recap 234

Exercises and Points to Consider 234

Suggested Reading 234

Notes 234

11 Evaluating Databases 237

Basic Facts and Figures 238

Initial Factual Information to Gather 238

Testing and Benchmarking 242

Testing 242

Benchmarking 247

Making a Request for Purchase 249

Elements to Include in the Request 249

Exercises and Points to Consider 251

Suggested Readings 251

Notes 252

12 Teaching Other People About Databases 253

Teaching Principles 254

Principle 1: Teach to Your Audience 255

Principle 2: Avoid Lecturing 255

Principle 3: Wait for Answers 256

Principle 4: Less Is More 257

Principle 5: Transparency in Teaching 257

Principle 6: You Have the Right to Be Wrong 258

Principle 7: Teaching with Technology 258

Principle 8: Practice 259

Database Teaching Opportunities 260

Teaching at the Reference Desk 261

Teaching an Information Literacy Session 261

A Staff Presentation 266

The Full Semester Class 267

Exercises and Points to Consider 268

Suggested Readings 268

Notes 269

References 271

Index 283