Essential Steps

Deciding what you are looking for

The first thing you should do before looking for information. To search effectively it is important that you consider exactly what question you are trying to answer.This is called developing a search strategy.

Think about:

what are the key concepts in your question? List them.
do you understand all the terms involved? If not, consult an encyclopedia or dictionary
what would be the best search terms to use? List them, but be willing to add and subtract from your list.

Deciding where to look for information

Not all information sources are equal. You need to think about what type of information you need as well as what level of information will best answer your question. Then you can use the most effective source material.

Brief factual information	Reference books, dictionaries, catalogues and encyclopedias
Biographical information	Brief: encyclopedias, history of an area or subject field Comprehensive: biography of subject
Current and up to date information	Journals, the internet (or world wide web), newspapers
Detailed information about a particular subject	Primarily books and journals -Books tend to be more comprehensive, but are often older. -Journal articles are generally very specialised, and concentrate on a very narrow subject area. -Some detailed information can be found on the web.
Specialised knowledge	Annual reports, book reviews, laws and other legal references, standards, patents, conference papers, theses and maps.

Knowing how to find the information you need

There are many different tools for finding information, and you need to use the right one for the right job, and you need to know how best to use it.

For books and journals use:

library catalogues
- Monash University Library Catalogue
- not held at Monash: Search other libraries catalogues

For journal articles:

electronic databases and CD-ROMs
printed indexes

For the Internet:

search engines e.g. AltaVista, Google
Internet subject Gateways/ Virtual Libraries

Evaluating the information you find

While you are looking for information you need to evaluate whether it is really relevant to the question you are trying to answer. If it does seem relevent you need to think critically about the information to ensure that you are using the most appropriate material for your work. The key elements you should look for are:

Relevance to your topic
Intended audience
Currency of the information
Reliability of the author or information source
Coverage of the topic that the information provides
Accuracy of the information
Level of objectivity of the author

Generally for university related assessment you need academic or scholarly resources.

Acknowledging and listing your sources

Although many people do not list their sources and references until they have finished a research project, the best time to think about it is when you begin. Take careful notes of what you have read, and where you read it, so that you can back up your conclusions, and find the information again if you need to.

Techniques for listing sources (citing) vary from department to department. One easy way to find out what style you should be using is to follow the one on your reading list. If in doubt, ask your lecturer or tutor.

It is essential that you acknowledge what you have read to protect yourself against charges of plagiarism. It is is also vital:

to prove that your work has a substantial, factual basis
to show the research you've done to reach your conclusions
to allow your readers to identify and retrieve the references for their own use