After identifying the key concepts of your question, you can start to plan your keywords.
It is useful to brainstorm alternative terms for each of your key concepts.
Alternative terms
Researchers can use different terminology to refer to the same topic.
Using alternative terms will help you find relevant studies.
Keywords and subject headings
When developing a search strategy for a review, it is best practice to use both keywords and subject headings
Keywords
- Terms that the author has used in the title and abstract of a paper.
- Authors can use different terms to refer to the same concepts, so it is useful to brainstorm keywords that suit your research question.
- Note: most databases do not search for keywords in the full-text of articles.
Subject headings
- Assigned by databases from a standardised set of terms.
- Capture articles with alternative terms you may not have considered.
- Particularly important for medicine subject areas.
- Note: not all databases use subject headings.
Synonyms and alternative terms
When thinking about keywords, you can consider different terms such as synonyms, broader and narrower terms, related terms and spelling variations.
Using our key concepts from earlier, here is an example of a brainstorming table:
"How do campus green spaces affect the mental health of university students?"
| Concept: | Green spaces | Mental health | University students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keywords: |
Green space(s) Gardens Landscape |
Mental health Wellbeing, Well-being Anxiety Stress |
University students College students Tertiary students |
Conduct initial searches to help identify relevant keywords
Researchers can use different terminology to refer to the same topic.
Look at the titles and abstracts of a set of relevant articles you have found to get ideas for keywords.
Ways to find initial articles on your topic
- Conduct quick searches in Google Scholar or a key database in your field.
- Look at the references or citations of relevant articles.
- Use AI-powered research tools such as ResearchRabbit, Scopus AI or Scite Assistant (Note: always evaluate AI-generated outputs).
Adding subject headings to your search
Depending on your topic area, you may also add subject headings to your keywords table.
- Subject headings are like tags assigned to the article to indicate its main concepts.
- They are a powerful way to search as they can capture articles with alternative terms you may not have considered.
- Use the database thesaurus to locate relevant subject headings.
Ideas for alternative terms
Here are some ideas to consider when brainstorming keywords:
- Synonyms - e.g. older people, older adults, elderly.
- Broader, narrower and related terms - e.g. the narrow corneal perforation or the broader eye injuries.
- Singular and plural forms as well as other word endings - e.g. pupil, pupils, pupillary.
- Spelling and spacing variations - e.g. pediatrics / paediatrics, health care / healthcare.
- Acronyms if helpful - e.g. GHG refers to Greenhouse gas, but also to Global Health Governance.
Next step
Now that you have some keywords, you can start your search in a database.