Whether it’s for an important decision in your life, your profession, or even a hobby, everyone occasionally finds themselves in situations where they need to research a topic. Perhaps one of the most challenging parts of research is getting started and having the know-how to locate good sources that can help you gain the knowledge you need. While it can be tricky at first, there are many ways you can simplify this process. Consider trying these five tips next time you start looking for information.
1. Specify What You’re Looking For
While you may be searching for information on a topic that is fairly general, it can be important that you identify the specifics of what you want to find before you begin looking. Not only can this make it easier to pull up relevant sources in an internet search, but it can be used to quickly scan articles for the facts you need. Using search bars and the Control F keyboard function to identify key terms can help you speed up the research process to get quick answers to questions you may have.
2. Go More In-Depth
If you are looking for a simple answer to a question, a quick search may be all you need to do, but if you’re trying to gain a deep understanding of a topic, going more in-depth with your research can be important. If you find a helpful article that has sources listed at the end, consider looking them up in order to find even more useful information. You can also try switching up the way you phrase internet searches in order to bring up a wider variety of results.
3. Take Notes
Keeping track of helpful information as you research can help you remember things better and easily access your sources for reference later. Taking notes can be done by using a notebook to write down facts or even by opening up a word document and pasting links to helpful websites. While it may not seem like it at first, taking notes can actually substantially increase your ability to focus and retain information and it can be more than worth the extra effort you put in.
4. Recognize Credibility
If you are planning on using information from your research in an academic or professional way, then it can be vital that you use sources that are credible. Choosing sources from organizations that work to give you accurate information, such as Bentham Science publishers, can be a good way to get started. There can be many ways to find credible sources, including using filtered databases. Investigating the credentials of the author can also be an important way to decide if the information is reliable.
5. Have a List of Go-To Sources
Everyone can benefit from having a mental list, of websites that they like to go to for research purposes. You should find there are many websites like Bentham science where you can find useful information on a variety of topics. Having a few favorite places to look for information can help make it easier to get started with your research and gain background knowledge on the topic you are investigating. While you will likely end up moving to new sources as you work, your favorites can be a great place to get an overview of a topic.
Finding Needed Information
Research can be a process that requires you to be patient and thorough, but by keeping a few guidelines in mind you can greatly increase your efficiency. You should find that by taking simple measures to increase the effectiveness of your research you ultimately save yourself a lot of time. Identifying what you need to look for and taking notes as well as having a few favorite websites to check out first can all be easy ways to make researching a topic less of a hassle.