Planning your search strategy is a crucial stage of the research process. It will save time and make searching more structured and relevant. The document outlines 8 key steps to an effective search strategy: 1) Define your topic, 2) Identify keywords and phrases, 3) Identify synonyms and related terms, 4) Determine what type of information is needed, 5) Select information sources, 6) Run your search, 7) Evaluate results and refine search, 8) Obtain items. The first 5 steps involve planning before any actual searching. Breaking the strategy into steps will help clearly identify needed information and prepare for searching.

1. Planning your search strategy

2. Before you start searching for information,
take time to plan your search strategy.
This is a crucial stage of the research process as:
• It will save you time
• Your searching will be more structured
• Your search results will be more relevant
When you start out, you may feel overwhelmed by the breadth of information
available.
However, by planning your searches in advance and applying effective search
techniques, you will find the most relevant content for your needs.

3. [1]
Define your topic
[2]
Identify
keywords and
phrases
[3]
Identify
synonyms and
related terms
[4]
What type of
information do
you need?
[5]
Select
information
sources
[6]
Run your search
[7]
Evaluate results
and refine search
[8]
Obtain Items
Don’t forget to
record your
references!
Search strategy: key steps
While this may
appear daunting at
first, by breaking
down the strategy
into manageable
steps, you will soon
identify exactly what
information you need
and be ready to start
searching in no time.

4. Search strategy: key steps
Note that most of
the steps take
place before any
actual searching!
This slideshow
will concentrate
on the first 5
stages of your
search strategy.
[1]
Define your topic
[2]
Identify
keywords and
phrases
[3]
Identify
synonyms and
related terms
[4]
What type of
information do
you need?
[5]
Select
information
sources
[6]
Run your search
[7]
Evaluate results
and refine search
[8]
Obtain Items
Don’t forget to
record your
references!

5. 1. Define your topic
Before you start searching it’s important to define your topic by identifying
and outlining the areas of your research subject:
What exactly are you being asked to do?
Carry out some background reading.
This will help you:
• Develop an understanding of core concepts
• Map sub-topics and related areas
• Narrow/broaden your research focus
• Clarify next steps
• Identify key authors/works
You can use the bibliographic details & references to identify further reading

6. ‘Content creation’ image by Ana Bierzanska
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/
Develop a concept map to identify:
• Main topics
• Sub-topics
• Related areas
• Key scholars and thinkers in the subject
• Potential keywords& search terms
You may find it useful to use mind-maps or post-its for
this.
1. Define your topic
Stylistic

7. 2. Identify keywords & phrases
Break your topic down into its key concepts
• Highlight any keywords in the assignment title or brief
• What additional single words or phrases could you use?
• Is there subject-specific terminology or technical terminology you could use?
• Are there any acronyms or abbreviations you could include in your search?

8. “What was the importance of puppets/marionettes in the writing and
practice of artists associated or contemporaneous with the Symbolist
movement? Focus on the work of Alfred Jarry or Maurice Maeterlinck”.
Concept 1 Concept 2 Concept 3
Puppet Symbolist movement Alfred Jarry
marionettes Maurice Maeterlinck
2. Here is an example of selecting keywords for a research topic question.
In this case we are focusing on a type of performance, it’s association with a particular style
and a specific author. As you can see, the keywords have been picked from the essay title
itself but you can expand on them.
The keywords have been organised by concept.

9. 3. Identify synonyms and related terms
What additional search terms can you include to ensure you carry
out a thorough information search?
• Synonyms and related terms
• Broader and narrower terms
• Spelling and terminology variations
(e.g. UK and US)

10. 4. What type of information do you need?
By asking yourself this question (or a series of questions), you can
determine the type and format of your sources of information.
Are you looking for:
• primary or secondary sources or a mixture of both?
• information in a particular format e.g. books, journal articles, videos,
playscripts etc.?
• scholarly literature or information aimed at general readership?
• UK or worldwide coverage
• current or historical sources
Once you are clear about the information you need you can move on to select
your information sources

11. 5. Select information sources
At this point you should have enough information to identify the most appropriate
information sources to search
The Drama Libguide is the best place to start your searching.
Think of it as the gateway to the university research resources.
From the Drama LibGuide you can access:
• Library Search
• A to Z Database list
• Resources specific to Drama
• You can also access support materials to help you develop
your research skills, other sources of information, library
services and library help.