1. L A K S A M E E P U T N A M
L P U T N A M @ T O W S O N . E D U
R E S E A R C H & I N S T R U C T I O N L I B R A R I A N
GERO 101:
The Research Process
Slides: http://bit.ly/sp2014geroslides

2. How can I help you?
 Laksamee Putnam
 lputnam@towson.edu
 Cook Library Reference:
 410.704.2462.
 IM/email
 Phone: 410.704.3746.
 Twitter: @CookLibraryofTU
 Albert S. Cook facebook profile!
 Slides: http://bit.ly/sp2014geroslides

3. A quick plug…
 National Library of
Medicine – Yellow Paper
exhibit 3rd Floor
 During a time when women
were challenging traditional
ideas about gender that
excluded them from political
and intellectual life, artist
and writer Charlotte Perkins
Gilman, who was
discouraged from pursuing
a career to preserve her
health, rejected these ideas
in a terrifying short story
titled "The Yellow Wall-
Paper."

4. Agenda
 Scholarly vs Popular
 How to formulate a search
 Finding Books/Articles
 APA Citations
 Hands on database practice

5. Scholarly vs Popular
 Scholarly
 Example 1
 Example 2
 Popular
 Example 1
 Example 2

6. Scholarly vs Popular
 Scholarly
 Written by an expert for
other experts
 Support your argument
with high quality
information
 Popular
 Entertaining but lack
depth
 Grab people’s interests but
should not be your only
resource

7. Scholarly vs Popular
 DuckDuckGo (2012). There are no “regular results”
on Google anymore.
 http://vimeo.com/duckduckgo/bubble

8. Formulating a Keyword Search
1. Choose a Topic
In your groups decide on a topic, write it on the whiteboard!

9. Formulating a Keyword Search
1. Choose a Topic
 End of life care of elderly

10. Formulating a Keyword Search
2. Narrow/Broaden your search
Consider your group topic, break it up
Create a few possible subtopics

11. Formulating a Keyword Search
2. Narrow/Broaden your search
 Elderly depression in end of life care

12. Formulating a Keyword Search
3. Identify the key concepts
Take one of your subtopics and write keywords describing it

13. Formulating a Keyword Search
3. Identify the key concepts
 Elder
 Depression
 End of life care

14. Formulating a Keyword Search
4. Consider synonyms/alternative spellings for terms
How else can you describe your topic, write down synonyms

15. Formulating a Keyword Search
4. Consider synonyms/alternative spellings for terms
 Elder
 Elder*
 Senior
 Aged
 Older person
 Older adult
 Depression
 hopelessness
 End of life care
 Palliative care
 Terminal care

16. Formulating a Keyword Search
5. Formulate your search utilizing various
combinations of your words
 String them together using AND/OR/NOT
 Truncate *
 Any “phrases”?

17. Formulating a Keyword Search
6. Evaluate what you find
 Check for CRAP
Currency
Reliability
Authority
Purpose/Point
of View
 Examples
 Pacific Northwest Tree
Octopus
 Autism and Vaccines

18. 3 ways to find Books
 http://cooklibrary.towson.edu
 Towson Books
 USMAI Books
 Interlibrary Loan

19. Finding Articles
 Go to the Gerontology Subject Gateway
 Numerous databases to choose from
 Search more than one
 Use your keywords and refine your search

20. Plagiarism
 Using someone’s ideas or expression of those
ideas (words, pictures, music, etc)
 Without giving proper credit

21. It’s out there, why not reuse it?
 Acknowledge where you
found the information
 Support your argument
 Allows others to find
additional informationWatson, M. (2013, March 4) Copyright –
the right to copy? Lariushin’s monographs
of plant families. Botanic Stories.
Retrieved from
http://stories.rbge.org.uk/archives/1321

22. APA Style
 Help Guide
 APA book is
available in the
library
 OWL or Diane
Hacker
Science Student. [Photographer]. Retrieved from Encyclopædia Britannica Image
Quest.http://quest.eb.com/images/115_2674314

23. APA style
 Journal Article:
 Author last name, first initial(s). (Year). Title of article. Title of
Journal, Volume(issue), pages. doi:xxxxxx
 Book:
 Author last name, first initial(s). (Year). Book title. Publication
information: place (city and state abbreviation), publisher’s
name.

24. Let’s start searching!
 Research your topic with your group!
 Begin by filling out this online spreadsheet
 http://bit.ly/sp2014gerows
 After you are done please go here to send me
feedback on this session
 http://bit.ly/VLiBPh

25. Questions?
 Feel free to contact me:
 Laksamee Putnam
 lputnam@towson.edu
 410.704.3746.
 Twitter: @LibrarianLaks
 Or any reference librarian:
 Visit Cook Library Reference Desk
 410.704.2462.
 IM – tucookchat