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ENGL 015: Rhetoric and Composition (Abington)

This guide is for ENGL 015 students at the Penn State Abington campus learn how to search for and evaluate sources for their assignments.

Identifying & Brainstorming Keywords

Example Search Term Brainstorming

Topic: How effective is pet therapy for elderly patients suffering from depression?

Major concepts: pet therapy, elderly patients, depression

	Concept 1	Concept 2	Concept 3
Major concept	pet therapy	elderly patients	depression
Synonyms	animal therapy animal assisted therapy	geriatric patients	melancholy sadness despair
Broader terms	psychiatry therapeutic rehabilitation psychotherapy	elderly aged older people	mental health psychology psychiatry mental illness
Narrower terms	animal assisted therapy	elderly women	chronic depression
Related words	pets attachment theory attachment behavior	gerontology	mood therapy

Search Strategies

Search Term	What it does	Example
AND	All terms must appear Narrows your search Fewer results Use to include multiple concepts	video games AND violence
OR	Either term may appear Broadens your search More results Use for related concepts	concussion OR traumatic brain injury
NOT	Removes a term from your search Narrows your search Fewer results Use for concepts you do not want to research	pet therapy NOT dogs
Phrases	Search for exact phrases Narrows your search Fewer results	"animal assisted therapy"

Generate Keywords for Your Topic (Fullerton)

Keyword Generator
Think of appropriate keywords for your topic with this interactive tutorial.