When searching the the catalog and databases for sources, do not type in whole sentences.
There is no one 'correct' search word to use. Different keywords will give you more results. Think of words that mean the same or something similar as your topic and try those words too.
E.g. Child, Children, Youth, Minors, Underage
Look for Names of People and Places related to your topic, in addition to Authors and Subject Experts and where they are from or Organizations and Agencies, Titles of studies and where they were published when mentioned in the texts, you might want to track down these sources for more information.
e.g. U.S. Department of Labor; Fair Labor Standards Act (1938), Coogans Law
You may need to broaden or narrow your search terms depending on your results :
Broader Search: Child Exploitation instead of Child Labor
Narrower Search: Meat-Processing instead of Factory
Use the asterisk * to truncate words and widen your search. Child* will search for Child, and Children
Use quotation marks to keep phrases together: e.g. "Underage Workers" "Overnight Shift"
e.g. search Child Labor AND United States
Child* AND "Overnight Shift"
Migrant Child* and Meatpacking and United States
Child Labor AND Clothing AND India
Child Labor AND Farm* AND United States
Try your search terms in different combinations to get the greatest number of results.
Read the abstract of the articles you find to see if they will be of use. The abstracts are a good place to find additional keywords and terms that may be helpful in your research.
