Description. Conducting a comprehensive literature search for a dissertation, thesis, or other large-scale project can be a challenging endeavor, even for the most experienced researcher. How do you know if you’re searching in the right place? How do you identify the most important or influential studies on your topic? How do you know if you’ve truly found everything? Addressing these common questions from an interdisciplinary perspective, this interactive workshop will focus on managing the research process at the graduate level. Participants will learn how to construct more productive and efficient searches, as well as track citation patterns over time. We will also discuss the role of the free web in literature searches and highlight strategies for locating relevant research outside a primary domain of expertise.

Learning Outcomes. As a result of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Define criteria for a comprehensive scholarly literature search

2. Develop appropriate strategies for searching a vast and complex digital environment lacking in traditional disciplinary boundaries

3. Recognize valuable resources that provide insight into the larger context of the literature in a given field.

Presenter(s). Samantha McClellan is the new Social Sciences Teaching & Faculty Outreach Librarian at Ekstrom Library. She teaches information literacy sessions that are customized to courses in various disciplines, provides reference assistance to students and faculty, and serves as the collection specialist and library liaison for Sociology, Political Science, Justice Administration, and Psychological & Brain Sciences.

Robert Detmering is an Assistant Professor and Teaching and Reference Librarian in the Humanities at Ekstrom Library. He teaches customized information literacy sessions in various disciplines, provides research assistance to students and faculty, and serves as collection specialist in anthropology, composition, literature, and philosophy.

Please register for this workshop here.