Library Research Process

Seven Steps of the Library Research Process

Acknowledgement

My gratitude to Duke University Libraries. I have adapted some ideas from Duke University Libraries (Perkins and Lilly): Guide to Library Research and have written this guide to suit the Papua New Guinea Student.

GUIDE TO LIBRARY RESEARCH

This guide gives the seven steps students should follow in conducting their research in the university Library or from other information sources including the internet.The seven steps ensure that you make good quick decisions from the start while doing an orderly research. In addition it is also a good help in organizing your thoughts and writing.

The seven steps of the library research process  are:

1. Choosing a topic

2. Finding Background Information

3. Refining a topic

4. Selecting Resources

5. Searching for Information

6. Evaluating Resources

7. Citing Sources

Choosing a topic  

Topic for research

Some students may find choosing a topic is the hardest task to decide in doing research. Your instructor may assign a general or specific topic, or the choice may be up to you. Knowing where to look for ideas will help you find an interesting subject.

Ideas  

Your interests, books and articles you have been reading, and conversations you have had in class or with others are often good sources of ideas.Current journals may give you an idea of hot research topics. Look through some recent issues of journals or magazines in the current periodical collection in the Library or the Internet. If you are going to search the Internet without knowing any journal title, type in your browser “free journals or “open access journals”.  

Browsing for ideas

Browsing the shelves in the library is also a good way to get an idea of topics. A good knowledge of the basic Dewey Decimal Classification  (DDC) is handy. Ask the Library staff if you wish to consult the DDC.  Books in the Library are shelved together by topic. Once you have identified the call number of one book, you can browse for related books on the same shelve.

You may also just simply Google (if you are using Google) the subject by typing in a subject term and see what is the current discussion on a subject.

Information requirement

When analyzing your assignment,  also consider the type, quantity, and format of information you will need.

Answering the following questions will help you organize your research

• What kind of assignment do you have to complete? (e.g., 5 minute oral presentation, 10 page paper, 50 page paper)
• How much information do you need? Remember your deadline for handing your paper.
• Is currency important?
• What types of publications do you want to read? (newspaper articles, books, journal articles, diaries, trade publications, etc.)
• What formats do you need? (visual, audio, printed, electronic)
• Is point of view an issue? Do you need opinions?
• How much time do you have?

Identify keywords

After you have formulated your topic identify keywords.  State your topic as a question to help you identify keywords. What are the significant terms, concepts, and keywords that describe your topic? These terms will become the keywords for searching catalogues and databases for information about your subject.

Example:

Topic: "The influence of logging activities on deforestation and people in PNG"

Topic stated in question form: "How does logging activities influence deforestation and the population in PNG?"

Keywords:

• Logging
• Deforestation
• Papua New Guinea

Finding Background Information

A good way to begin your research is to locate and read short articles that will give you a broad overview of a topic. You can find these articles in a variety of reference materials. Also, these resources often provide bibliographies that will allow you to discover additional information on a subject.

Some of the sources to give a broad overview

• General Encyclopedias
• Specialized/Subject Specific Encyclopedias
• Specialized/Subject Specific Dictionaries
• Almanacs
• Handbooks
• Thesaurus
• Periodical Articles from Full-Text Databases
• Biographical Sources
• Other Sources from the Catalogue

General Encyclopedias

General Encyclopedias  are designed to cover all branches of knowledge and they are likely to have some information on every topic. They are often good sources to consult first, since they introduce the main concepts about a subject and suggest other sources that may be helpful. Two examples of general encyclopedias are:

• The World Book Encyclopedia.
• The New Encyclopaedia Britannica

Specialized or Subject-Specific Encyclopedias

Examples are:

• Encyclopedia of Psychology
• McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology.

Specialized or Subject-Specific Dictionaries

Examples are:

• A Dictionary of Architecture.
• A Short Dictionary of Architecture, Including Some Common Building Terms.
• International Dictionary of Architects and Architecture.

Almanacs

Almanacs are filled with up-to-date answers to all kinds of questions. Whether you are looking for basic statistics on government funding of HIV programs or recent winners of the Melbourne Cup, you are likely to find the information in an almanac. They provide figures, charts, tables, and statistics.

Examples are:

• The Time Almanac (formerly the Information Please Almanac)
• World Almanac and Book of Facts.
• Whitaker's Almanac.
• The Star Almanac for Land Surveyors  2001

Handbooks

Handbooks supply concise factual information like charts, formulas, tables, statistical data, and historical background. Because they are updated frequently, handbooks include information about new developments. References to additional information are usually included.

Examples are:

• The Physics Quick Reference Guide.
• Handbook of Physical Quantities.

Periodical Articles 

Sometimes articles in newspapers or general interest periodicals (Post Courier, The National, Newsweek, Time, National Geographic) can provide a quick overview of a subject. Searches in general periodicals may also provide you with an idea of what kinds of articles are being written about a subject.

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Biographical Sources

Sometimes you may want to learn something about a person without having to read a full-length biography. The Library has several biographical reference works that provide relatively brief articles about thousands of people. You can always expect to find something about the most famous people. It should also be possible to find something about people that are not widely known.

Examples are: 

• Dictionary of American Biography 
• Who's Who in America
• Dictionary of National Biography: the concise dictionary
• Encyclopedia of World Biography
• New York Times Biographical Service

Refining a Topic

Once you have found some background information, you can refine your broad research topic into a narrow or focused topic. If you quickly develop a broad topic into a focused topic, it will make it easier for you to have a clear picture of what you will eventually write at the end. On the other hand, if your subject is too focused or detailed, you may have a hard time finding enough sources to write a good paper. In this case, you need to broaden your topic. Depending on your interests, a general topic can be focused in many ways. For example, if you want to write a paper on "government funding of education", consider the following questions:

• What do you already know about this subject?
• Is there a specific time period you want to cover?
• Is there a geographic region or country on which you would like to focus?
• Is there a particular aspect of this topic that interests you? For example, public policy implications, historical influence, cultural aspects, psychological angles, specific groups or individuals involved in the topic.

The online catalogue can give you some ideas for narrowing a topic. Subject headings in the catalogue are broken down into subheadings that define geographical locations, material types, or specific aspects of a topic. Some subject headings also have Search also under or See also notes and links that identify other related or narrower subjects. Besides the online catalogue, you may consult Library of Congress Subject Headings List. A copy of this is available in the Library for students use.

Broadening topics that are too narrow are fairly simple to refine. Think of similar and broader associations for your subject to find a broader topic that will be easier to research. Bear in mind, sometimes a topic may be very new and sources to your research questions may not yet exist. For example, if you want to do a paper on the effect of deforestation on PNG's long-term ability to feed its citizens, consider the following questions:

• Could you examine other countries or regions in addition to PNG?
• Could you think more broadly about this topic? Consider wider topics like agriculture and sustainable development.
• Who are the key players in this topic? The government? Citizens? International organizations
• What other issues are involved in this topic? For example, how can natural resources be allocated most economically to sustain the people of PNG?

Example

Specific Topic:   What is the effect of deforestation on PNG’s long-term ability to feed its citizens?

Alternative Focus: Agriculture, sustainable development 

Alternative Place: South Pacific

Alternative Person or Group: United Nations and its subgroups. 

Alternative Event or Aspect: Birth Control.
After you have taken into account the above alternatives your topic may look something like this: How can the United Nations encourage South Pacific countries to employ sustainable development practices?

Example

Topic Narrowing

General Topic:  Government funding of education.

Time Span:   1980s

Place:   PNG

Event or Aspects:   Education reform

Narrowed Topic:   Government funding for the education reforms program through the Department of Education.

Selecting Resources

In order to be organized in collecting information it is advisable the student keep an Information Timeline. This timeline should be arranged by date of publication from the oldest to the current. This is not only good for organizing your search but comes handy in your bibliography.

Searching for Information

Depending on your topic, different types of resources (the web, newspapers, magazines, journals, books, etc.) may be more appropriate than others. You need to be aware of what kind of information is in each type of resource and who the intended audience is.  The different type of resources:

• Books,
• Journal Articles, 
• Newspaper Articles, 
• Bibliographies,
• Book Reviews,
• Government Documents,
• Primary Sources,
• Review Articles,
• Statistics,
• Video and Sound Recordings,
• Web Pages.

Evaluating Resources

Consider the following criteria when evaluating resources:

• Quantity
• Diversity
• Date of Publication
• Quality and Reliability
• Additional Resources

Quantity

Make sure there are enough resources  needed to:

• Support your argument
• — Include a variety of viewpoints and materials

Diversity—  

Variety is necessary therefore include many different resources from primary and secondary sources.—

 Primary Sources

—Contemporary accounts of events and original documents such as
—letters, diaries, audio-recordings of speeches, newspaper articles— 

Secondary Resources

 Retrospective sources based on primary resources include scientific or scholarly analysis
— Examples of retrospective sources are books, articles, editorials, reviews, and scientific studies

Date of Publication

When was the source published? Remember the Information Timeline. Depending on the topic of research different materials from different time periods will be used.

—Current Events Research

• Use resources that are recent and reflect current academic and public interests.— 

Historical Research

• Use a variety of resources from different time periods including both Primary and Secondary resources. 

Quality and Reliability— 

When choosing your resources, the most difficult task is determining their quality and reliability. This is particularly problematic when a source is found through the Internet. Some factors to think about when assessing the quality and reliability of a publication are:

• —Intended audience
• Purpose of the publication
• Assumptions the author makes
• —Bases of the author's conclusions
• Author's support or disagreement with other authors of the subject
• Content is in line with what you know or have learned about the issue

— To help determine quality and reliability, it might also help to look over the source's documentation and read some reviews of the source. There are very few review sources in the Library but many are available on the Internet. Search the internet using terms such as reviews or more specifically book reviews and you will find review sources. This task requires making additional considerations or further background reading taking into account the following:

• Does the source provide other leads?
• Documentation (i.e., footnotes and bibliography) that:
• Provides additional resources
• Substantiates the author's research

• Know the difference between popular magazines and scholarly journals. Unlike popular magazines, articles in scholarly journals usually have a Reference List or Bibliography at the end.

— Citing Sources 

In academia, the ethics of research demand that authors be credited for their work and their writing. First years at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology are required to use the American Psychological Association (APA) style manual as a guide for writing and citation. A copy of this is available on special reserve in the Library. There are also other style manuals available in the Library. Citation guides are also available on the internet. Please consult the APA style manual for guidance on citation. This will help you to avoid plagiarism as well as help you to compile your bibliography.
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