Advanced Search Operators
What are Advanced Search Operators
Advanced search operators allow you to develop and refine your search strategy to find the data to answer your research question.
Advanced search operators enhance your search ability allowing you to narrow or expand your search parameters as needed and in the most effective way.
These are more sophisticated approaches to finding information by applying a range of techniques such as Boolean operators, phrase searching, proximity limiters, truncations, and wildcards to your search strategy.
These operators allow you to start with a broad search strategy and through the search process systematically refine the search terms, keywords and phrases you are using to identify the source you need.
Developing your search skills to incorporate advanced search operators sources will not only help you produce relevant search results, it will also allow you to exclude unnecessary ones, shortening the search process to save you time.
When to use Advanced Search Operators
Advanced search operators leverage the power of the library catalogue and other sophisticated database indexing to sift through the vast amounts of data to find the information you need.
When using a search strategy to find information you will define your research question, identify related keywords, create keyword combinations and phrases to test in the library catalogue. The final stage is where you will review your initial results and refine your search, this is where advanced search operators can add value.
Using advanced search operators it is possible to leverage the power of the database indexing to filter through a series of search options and refine your search results.
At stage 5 of your search process when you have some familiarity with the subject and are progressing your investigations and search queries you will be able to start to introduce and employ Boolean operators, truncation, wildcards, and proximity limiters to focus your search activities.
How to use Advanced Search Operators
Advanced search operators are powerful tools that enhance the precision and efficiency of online searches. These operators, also known as search modifiers, enable users to customize their search queries, providing more accurate and targeted results.
They go beyond simple keyword searches, allowing individuals to refine their exploration of the vast information available on the internet and incorporating these advanced search operators into your search strategies can improve the efficiency and relevance of your research activities.
Using these operators at the right stage of your search to get the best results:
Step 1: Review your Initial Search Results
Begin by revisiting your research question and assessing your initial search results.
Evaluate the quantity and relevance of the information you've gathered.
Step 2: Clarify Your Requirements and Goals
Reflect on your initial search strategy and consider whether any adjustments or refinements are necessary to align with your evolving requirements.
Some situations where you may want to consider using Advanced Search Operations are:
For Complex Research Questions: If your research question is intricate and involves multiple aspects, Advanced Search Operators can help you precisely target the information you need.
For Broad Initial Results: If your initial search generates a large volume of results, and you need to narrow down the information to make it more relevant, Advanced Search Operators can be useful.
If you Need Specific Sources: When you're looking for information from particular types of sources (e.g., scholarly articles, books, government reports), Advanced Search Operators can help filter and refine your results.
Step 3: Experiment with Advanced Search Operators
Explore advanced search operators to fine-tune your search effectively:
Filter Hyperlinks - Some libraries provide Filter Hyperlinks on the search results page. Explore options like Date Range, Geography, Subject, and Language to narrow your search.
Boolean Operators - Use linking words like "and," "or," and "not" in Boolean searches to make your searches more precise or broad. These operators help connect search parameters and refine your results.
Wildcards - Overcome issues of common spelling variations by adding Wildcards to your Advanced Search. Insert a character (usually "") in place of a letter where variations may occur. For instance, "utilie" broadens the search to include both "utilize" and "utilise."
Examples of Advanced Search Operators
Sometimes different databases use different Operators so if you use one of the operators below and get funky results check the Help section for a full list of the Operators and double-check how they expect you to use it.
These are the most common Search Operators are listed here:
ATLEAST[x]
Looking for a source that extensively mentions a specific term or phrase you can use ATLEAST[x].
Using this search operator the search engine will return results for sources with at least 5 mentions of the term motivation within the text.
Example: atleast5 motivation
Boolean Operators - AND
Using Boolean Operators allows you to expand the focus of your search, narrow your search parameters or exclude specific items.
To narrow the focus of your search use AND between search terms.
Using this search operator the search engine will return results for sources with mentions of the terms motivation and self-efficacy within the text.
Example: motivation AND self-efficacy
Boolean Operators - OR
Using Boolean Operators allows you to expand the focus of your search, narrow your search parameters or exclude specific items.
To expand your search use OR between search terms.
Using this search operator the search engine will return results for sources with mentions of the terms motivation or self-efficacy within the text.
Example: motivation OR self-efficacy
Boolean Operators - NOT
Using Boolean Operators allows you to expand the focus of your search, narrow your search parameters or exclude specific items.
To limit your search and exclude specific terms use NOT between search terms.
Using this search operator the search engine will return results for sources with mentions of the term motivation no mentions of the term self-efficacy within the text.
Example: motivation NOT self-efficacy
To search within sources for terms that occur close to one another you can use the search operator NEAR[x].
Using this search operator the search engine will return results for sources with a mention of motivation or self-efficacy within at least 5 mentions of the other term.
Example: motivation near5 self-efficacy
Parentheses ( )
Using parentheses you can create a group of terms to search.
The search engine will give equal weighting to each term within your group and return only results that include all terms in your group.
Example: (study skills)
Proximity Operators
Proximity operators allow you to search for terms that are close to one another.
Three common proximity operators are ADJ, NEAR[x] and WITHIN[x].
The search engine will return results where the terms are adjacent to each other or within [x] words.
ADJ example: Study ADJ skills
NEAR1 example: Study NEAR1 skills
W/[x] example: Study w/1 skills
Quotation Marks
Using parentheses you can combine a group of terms to create a phrase.
The search engine will search for each term within your phrase in the order you have entered them.
Example:
”Study skills for students”
Wildcards
Wildcards allow you to adjust for different spelling of words and phrases, truncate words and search for a family of terms.
Three common wildcard operators are *, !, %.
The asterisk * is the most common wildcard operator but it does vary between different products and software.
Example:
Replacing the y of study with a wildcard expands the search term to include: study, student, studies, etc.
Benefits of using Advanced Search Operators
Using Advanced Search Operators offers several benefits, enhancing the precision and efficiency of your online searches:
Precision and Relevance: Advanced Search Operators enable you to fine-tune your search queries, providing more precise and relevant results tailored to your research needs.
Customization: These operators go beyond simple keyword searches, allowing you to customize your search queries according to specific parameters, refining your exploration of vast information available on the internet.
Efficiency: Incorporating Advanced Search Operators into your search strategies can significantly improve the efficiency of your research activities. You can quickly filter out irrelevant information and focus on what matters most.
Complex Query Handling: For complex research questions that involve multiple concepts, keywords, or criteria, Advanced Search Operators provide a systematic way to handle these complexities, ensuring a more organized and targeted search.
Broad to Specific Refinement: If your initial search generates broad results, Advanced Search Operators help you narrow down your focus, making your search more specific and saving time.
Source Type Filtering: When you need information from specific types of sources (e.g., scholarly articles, books, websites), Advanced Search Operators allow you to filter and refine your results based on these criteria.
Combining Keywords: Boolean operators (and, or, not) in Advanced Search let you combine different keywords and phrases logically, offering flexibility in expressing the relationships between terms.
Overcoming Spelling Variations: Advanced Search Operators, such as Wildcards, help overcome issues related to common spelling variations, ensuring a more comprehensive search.
Systematic Literature Reviews: For in-depth research projects like systematic literature reviews, Advanced Search Operators are essential for conducting thorough and targeted searches across diverse sources.
Time Saving: By encouraging you to focus on the most relevant information to answer your research question Advanced Search Operators can help to keep you focused and save time during the research process.
Incorporating these operators into your search approach can significantly enhance your ability to retrieve accurate and targeted results, making your research more effective and productive.
Drawbacks of using Advanced Search Operators
While Advanced Search Operators offer numerous benefits, there are potential drawbacks associated with their use:
Learning Curve: Mastering Advanced Search Operators may require time and effort, and there could be a learning curve for individuals unfamiliar with these sophisticated search techniques.
Complexity: The use of Advanced Search Operators involves dealing with more complex search queries, which may be challenging for beginners and could lead to errors in constructing effective searches.
Overemphasis on Precision: While precision is a key advantage, excessive focus on using Advanced Search Operators for precision might result in missing out on relevant information that doesn't fit the defined criteria.
Potential Filtering Bias: Overreliance on certain operators, such as Boolean operators, might unintentionally introduce bias by filtering out sources that could provide a different perspective or valuable insights.
Limited Application: In some simple searches or when exploring broad topics, Advanced Search Operators may not be necessary and might even complicate the process.
Summary
There is no single perfect search query you can use that will provide you all the results you need. Research is a systematic process of test, recording, learning and tweaking so you will need to conduct multiple searches to find what you need for your assignment or research project.
No matter how you choose to conduct your research, knowledge of the advanced search operators and how to search for the information you need will make the research process more manageable when it comes to assignments and research projects.
With practice, you can learn to incorporate advanced search operators into search strategy to identify and source the best set of information to answer the research question.
Search Strategy Templates
We have A4 and US Letter Search Strategy templates for you to use to document your research activities. Available in our store to purchase. Use the Add To Cart buttons below to find out more.
