Start your search

You might need to search several academic databases to make sure you’ve covered all bases. Since each database has unique sources for obtaining data and unique processes for deciding which journal articles to index, limiting your search to only one database may cause you to overlook relevant articles. For example, if you restrict your search to Elsevier’s Science Direct, you are very likely to miss relevant publications, since this database mostly indexes journals published by Elsevier.

Sources for searching



Follow the citations

Once you have identified some relevant journal articles, an easy way to find more studies is by looking through the reference lists of these articles (backward searching). The reference studies are likely to be quite relevant for you as well. In addition, look at the papers that have cited the articles since they were published (forward searching). This will help you find the newer studies that have built upon the work.

Keep a written record of your searches

Note down the names of journals that you come across often during your searches. Over time, you will get a good idea of which journals are most prominent in your field and which journals you should consider publishing in. In addition, keep a list of the keywords and keyword combinations that return the best results. This will not only reduce the time taken for future searches but also yield a list of terminologies that are common in your field.

Use a references manager

With the huge number of studies you will probably have to sift through and track, manual compilation of references is no longer an option. Use a reference manager like Endnote (purchase required) or Zotero (free). Reference managers allow you to download and save papers in your computer’s library directly from journal websites with just one button click. They also make it very easy to organize your library and compile reference lists. Although these programs may be difficult to use initially, skimming through their help manual or video tutorial along with a few days of learning through trial and error are all that’s required to become comfortable with them.

Keeping up with the literature

A large number of databases and publishers provide one or more of the following alerts features:Table-of-Contents (TOC) alerts, citation alerts, and keyword alerts. These alerts are very useful for keeping up with newly published papers and research topics. With many alert services, you receive alerts in the form of emails listing the title and authors of newly published papers, and sometimes even abstracts.

How to keep up with new publications through alerts
So, in a literature search, I should only look at journals, right?

Not quite! Books can be a useful starting point in your research. They can provide you a general overview of your topic (especially if you’re just beginning your research career). There’s also another valuable source of information—grey literature . Grey literature consists of information that is not easily searchable through conventional search engines, databases, and library catalogues. Searches of grey literature searches can yield valuable information indicating current hot topics for research.

Conference proceedings can provide the latest findings and discussions on the topic you’re studying and give you clues on forthcoming papers that may be published. Unpublished clinical trials will inform you of trials already undertaken and their results. Theses, dissertations, and working papers can alert you to similar work being undertaken by other researchers. A note of caution: you do need to be extra careful when citing grey literature in your paper. Make sure that the scientific quality of the study you are citing can stand up to scrutiny.