Search Strategies

Library databases work well for me so I do prefer it over Google Scholar. Although Google Scholar is useful at times, I’ve really become comfortable with library databases. I prefer library databases because I am able to conduct my research more easily, compared to Google Scholar. Library databases are much easier to navigate through and find relevant information in. I especially like how library databases gives you the option to filter your search results. You are able to narrow down your search by selecting the field of which the topic corresponds to.
A very useful database is the York University library database. In this specific database, you select the field of study under which your topic would fall under. Fields include anything from business writing, to biology, to marketing, and so many more. This small step makes a huge difference- you’d be surprised. It significantly narrows down results that come up, eliminating irrelevant information. After selecting the appropriate field, a list of other databases come up, only these ones are specific to the field that has been selected. For example, if you select that your field is biology, approximately 38 database results appear, which you can then choose from, ultimately narrowing down your search even more so.
I love the library database- you really are able to pinpoint what information will do justice for your topic, versus what will be useless. From what I know, Google Scholar unfortunately does not offer this feature, and you may therefore be left with an overwhelming number of results- few of which may actually apply to your topic. This makes the research process extremely lengthy and very difficult.
The key difference between the two lies here. It basically comes down to how much control you have over your results, and in this case, you do with library databases. Google is used for more general searches, and library databases are more for precise ones. Google Scholar just can’t do everything that a library database can. Library databases give you the option to simplify your results to special materials also. If you are looking for a book, you can filter your results based on that. You have so many other options of course too! You can narrow your results down to magazines, videos, articles, and more.
I do suppose that Google Scholar and library databases could be used in combination when conducting research. Perhaps, you might refer to Google Scholar first to actually help with selecting a topic. The results from google tend to be more general so they might give someone ideas as to the topic to settle on. From there you might refer to a library database to refine your search and actually begin the research process.
All in all, depending on the type of research I am conducting, both Google Scholar and library databases could be great, and I will continue to use them both- maybe even in combination. Without a doubt though, library databases is still my preference and this will continue to be the foundation of my research!