2. The Assignment
Find a minimum of eight sources. Of these, you
can use five sources, four of which MUST be
peer reviewed sources to support or develop an
argumentative position for the 5-8 page essay.
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
3. Research Basics
Break down your thesis statement by concept
Develop research question(s)
Create a research strategy
◦ Boolean operators
◦ Truncation
◦ Adjacency
Conduct background research
◦ Gale Virtual Reference Online
◦ Oxford Reference Online
◦ Opposing Viewpoints In Context
◦ CQ Researcher
Select databases & other resources
◦ Academic Search Complete
4. Creating a Search Strategy
President Trump should not build a
continuous border wall between the
US and Mexico.
5. Creating a Search Strategy
Break down your topic by the most specific key concepts in your
statement.
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
6. Creating a Search Strategy
Break down your thesis statement by the most specific concept(s).
President Trump must not build a
continuous border wall between the
US and Mexico.
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
8. Research Questions
President Trump must not build a continuous border wall between
the US and Mexico
Why do we need a wall?
Is there an immigrant crisis at the US//Mexico borderlands?
How many undocumented immigrants and/or asylum seekers cross
the border each year?
How do the number of border crossers compare with the
Canadian/ US borderlands?
What would the wall cost? Where would the money come from?
What are the environmental impacts of a continuous wall?
Will a continuous wall stop migration or will these people find
another way to enter the US?
What interventions/policies might decrease or stop mass migration
to the US?
12. Creating a Search Strategy
What are Boolean Operators?
Computer commands used to create a research
strategy.
Connect abstract concepts
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
13. Creating a Search Strategy
Border
Wall
EcologyTrump
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
AND
Boolean Operators
• AND
• OR
Teenagers
Adolescents
Teenagers
OR
Adolescents
OR
14. Creating a Search Strategy
Truncation
◦ More results
◦ Plurals
Asterisk *
◦Ecolog*
◦Ecology
◦Ecologies
◦Ecological
◦Ecologically
15. Creating a Search Strategy
Adjacency
◦ Forced phrase command
◦ Command is quotation marks
◦ EXAMPLES
◦“people of color”
◦“school to prison pipeline”
◦ “environmental justice”
◦“food desert*”
◦“employee surveillance”
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
17. Journals vs Magazines
Journals (Scholarly)
◦ Written for a scholarly audience
◦ Report on research
◦ In-depth
◦ Extensive bibliography
◦ May be “peer reviewed”
Magazines & Newspapers (Popular)
◦ General audience
◦ Short
◦ Little detail
23. Databases – Background Information
Reference – Dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks
• Latino American Experience
• Oxford Reference Online
• Gale Virtual Reference Online
SUSAN LUÉVANO, CSULB, UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
24. Databases - Pro & Con
Pro & Con arguments
• Opposing Viewpoints In Context
• CQ Researcher
25. Databases – Also useful
Ethnic Studies
◦Ethnic NewsWatch (Limit to Scholarly)
Sociological Abstracts
PsycINFO
GenderWatch
America: History & Life
ERIC (Limit to Journals)
35. Need a little help?
Ask at the Research & Information Desk, 1st
West
Use “Ask a CSULB Librarian” chat
Consultations
◦Susan Luévano
◦Susan. luevano@csulb.edu
