LibGuides: Politics, Philosophy and International Relations: Research Skills

MyUni Library Essentials - Researching

MyUni Library Essentials - Enrol This online course is your starting point for learning how to use the Library. This course is made up of videos and tutorials designed by your Librarians, and will help you to get the most out of your Library both online and on campus.
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Please follow the link to self-enrol on MyUni Library Essentials if you have not accessed the course before.

MyUni Library Essentials includes a section on Researching. Follow the link below to learn how to plan a search strategy and conduct your search. (You need to log in to Canvas to access the link.)

MyUni Library Essentials - Researching

Keywords

Find the keywords for your assignment topic. Don’t type in a long sentence.
Are there synonyms or related terms (broader or more specific) that might be relevant?

Getting more results

You can use a truncation symbol (usually an asterisk *) to find different endings to your keyword. For example, searching for read* would find read, reading, reads, etc.
You can find alternative terms simultaneously by linking them with OR; for example, you could search for adolescent OR teenager.

Getting fewer results

If you get too many results try searching just the title or abstract rather than the full record. You should get fewer, more relevant results.
Use quotation marks if you want your search terms to appear as a phrase; for example "artificial intelligence"
Use the filter options down the side of the results page to make your search more specific

Research record sheet

Critically appraising your sources is a crucial element of any literature search. You need to consider is your sources are:

reliable
academic enough
Free from bias

Ask yourself the following questions about the information you have found.

Who?

Who is the author or organisation responsible for the information?
Are they qualified to write on this topic?

When?

Is the information out of date?
Does it matter?

What sort of information?

Is it opinion or fact?
Is it reliable and independent?
Is it academic/research-focussed or commercial?

Sage Research Methods

Sage Research Methods This link opens in a new window
Use Sage Research Methods to learn about different research methods, find case studies and use statistical resources.
Content
Access to hundreds of ebooks on research methods and methodology. There are also podcasts and videos to explain some concepts.
Tools
There are a number of tools to help you with your research project or dissertation:
- The Methods Map is a mind map that shows you how different research methods are related and links to information about those methods
- The Project Planner gives step-by-step guidance for your research project
- Which Stats Test can help you decide which statistical method is best for your data

Research Question Frameworks

Start considering your key search terms by identifying the key concepts in your research questions and then consider synonyms, related terms, different spellings, abbreviations, more specific and general terms that an author or authors may have used to discuss the topic.

Research question frameworks can help you to frame your research question and identify concepts for your structured literature review or empirical research.

We've listed a few research question frameworks here but there are many more. If your topic does not fit a framework you can also just separate your topic into different search concepts.

The PICO framework can help you to frame your research question and identify concepts for a medical/clinical search. It is widely used in systematic reviews and evidence-based practice.

Example question: Does the use of Handwashing reduce the risk of hospital acquired infections.

Problem/Patient/Population	Who or what is the focus of your research	Hospital acquired infection
Intervention	What intervention or treatment are you investigating	Handwashing
Comparison	Are you comparing this intervention (not always necessary)	Hand gels or sanitizers
Outcome	What effect does this intervention have	Reduce infections

The PEO framework can help you to frame a qualitative research question.

Example question: How does Alzheimer's affect the caregiver's quality of life.

Population	Who is the focus of your research	Caregivers
Exposure	What is the issue you are interested in	Alzheimer's
Outcome	Outcomes you want to examine	Quality of life

The SPICE framework can help you to frame your research question and identify concepts for a Social Sciences or healthcare search.

Example question: In low-income communities in the UK, how does access to green spaces affect mental well-being

Setting	Location of the study	UK
Perspective/Population	The group you are studying	Low income communities
Intervention/Interest, of Phenomenon	What intervention or treatment are you researching	Access to green spaces
Comparison	Are you comparing this intervention (not always necessary)	No access to green spaces
Evaluation	What are the outcomes	Does it affect Mental Health

Booth, A. (2004). Formulating answerable questions. In A. Booth & A. Brice (Eds.), Evidence based practice for information professionals: A handbook (pp. 61-70). Facet Publishing.

The SPIDER framework can help you to frame your research question and identify concepts for a Social Sciences or healthcare search, and is particularly useful for qualitative or mixed method research questions.

Example question: What are young parents’ experiences of attending antenatal education? (Cooke et al., 2012)

Sample	Group of people you are researching	Young Parents
Phenomenon of Interest	What is being investigated	Experience of Antenatal education
Design	Research methods used	Questionnaires or Interviews
Evaluation	What outcomes are being measured	Views or Experiences
Research type	What is the research type	Qualitative

Cooke, A., Smith, D., & Booth, A. (2012). Beyond PICO: The SPIDER tool for qualitative evidence synthesis. Qualitative Health Research, 22(10), 1435-1443.

Research Support and Open Access

MyUni Library Postgraduate - Enrol This Postgraduate course contains links to information useful to you as a Postgraduate, including Library Guides and external sources. It works best by navigating to the section on which you require information, although there are also a lot of useful links in the Support section. Use this guide to help you throughout your Postgraduate career.
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Please follow the link to self-enrol on MyUni Library Postgraduate if you have not accessed the course before.

This Postgraduate course contains links to information useful to you as a Postgraduate, including Library Guides and external sources. It works best by navigating to the section on which you require information, although there are also a lot of useful links in the Support section. Use this guide to help you throughout your Postgraduate career.

MyUni Library Postgraduate This Postgraduate course contains links to information useful to you as a Postgraduate, including Library Guides and external sources. It works best by navigating to the section on which you require information, although there are also a lot of useful links in the Support section. Use this guide to help you throughout your Postgraduate career.
Library Research Support Our Library team provide a number of resources and services to support researchers and postgraduates throughout the whole research cycle.