FAQ: How do I focus my search results to see things more relevant to my topic?

Many databases, as well as the Multi-Search, hav some form of search filters, or tools available on the search results page to help you refine your list of results. The location of the search filters on the search results page may vary depending on the database, as well as which search filters are available to you, but the skills you gain as you learn to use search filters in one will apply to all.

EBSCO databases (including the Multi-Search)

EBSCO databases, including the Multi-Search, put their search filters at the top of your search results page under the search box. There is an "All filters" button that contains all of the search filters, as well as several commonly used filters listed individually. The "Peer Reviewed (Scholarly)" filter allows you to limit your results to only articles from peer reviewed journals, the "All time" filter is the publication date option that lets you limit to only recently published articles, and the "Source type" filter lets you limit to only a certain type of content, like academic journals, ebooks, magazines, etc.

The "All filters" button will open the filters menu on the right side of your search results page. The same filters that are listed below the search box are also included here, along with several other options like language, geography, and subject term:

Limit by Subject Term

Using the "Limit by Subject Term" filter is a good way to narrow your search results down to more relevant content. In the "All filters" menu, click "Limit by Subject Term" to expand the menu. You can check the boxes next to any subject terms that you feel best represent your topic, then click the "Apply" button at the bottom of the "All filters" menu. Your search results list will be more narrow and focused on only resources that are officially tagged with the subject terms you chose. You can also use these subject terms as keywords in new searches to find more resources on the same topic.