Always was, always will be Aboriginal land.

 

The University of Sydney Library acknowledges that our buildings, collections, and practices exist on unceded Aboriginal lands. We recognise the diversity and knowledges of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff and students across all the lands the University stands on, and respect the ongoing connection Aboriginal people have to these lands, their cultural practices, knowledge systems and histories. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present, who have handed down custodianship to each generation for more than 60,000 years. 

 

Money, J. (2021). Yilabara (Now). Filmed on Gadigal Country. Commissioned by the University of Sydney Library

First Nations Hub

Scoping searches

Begin your research by running a scoping search to learn about your topic
About scoping searches
Where to do a scoping search
How to do a scoping search

About scoping searches

A scoping search is a quick database search with 1 or 2 concepts in a research topic. It can help you:

  • learn more about a topic
  • determine the extent of existing research on your topic
  • identify key authors and papers
  • narrow your topic to a research question
  • plan a comprehensive search strategy for a literature review.

Where to do a scoping search

A scoping search can be run in:

  • the library catalogue
  • library databases
  • search engines (e.g. Google or Google Scholar)

Multidisciplinary databases like Scopus are useful scoping tools because of their wide subject coverage.

How to do a scoping search

To run a scoping search, type one term from each concept into the search bar and combine them with AND. In a database like Scopus, you can enter each term on its own line in the advanced search.

Look through the results of your scoping search to find:

  • key papers and leading journals in the research area
  • notable authors publishing research on the topic
  • synonyms for your concepts that can be included in your search.

Re-run the search with different terms to expand your knowledge of the topic and narrow your research question.