What is a Pre-search?
The pre-search is the very first phase of academic writing. All researchers, no matter how seasoned, goes through the information gathering stage in order to better understand both their research question, as well as the topic they are studying. Gathering basic information about context, timelines, alternative terms, and key figures will help simplify the academic research process. This page offers you resources to help you find this foundational information, as well as questions you may want to answer to help guide the research phase.
Helpful pre-search worksheets
Bellow are some worksheets that can be used in the pre-search process. Please feel free to use them not in only this class, but in any other class, or assignment, they might prove helpful.
Librarian
Sources to help your pre-search
Bellow are some library databases that will help in the gathering of background and context information. When looking through these sources pay particularly close attention to the names of scholars and historical figures that feature prominently, as well as keywords that you can use when stating research in the academic databases.
Best Bets: Encyclopedias representing a variety of research topics
- Oxford Research EncyclopediasFull-text encyclopedias on a range of topics that include in-depth, peer-reviewed summaries written by scholars across all fields of study.
- Oxford Digital Reference ShelfFull-text reference works from Oxford University Press covering a broad range of subjects, and including timelines, quotations, and overviews.
- Cambridge e-BooksMake sure to checkmark the "Only search content I have access to" box to limit results to titles that BGSU and OhioLINK subscribe to.
Thousands of scholarly monographs published by Cambridge University Press since 2015. An agreement with OhioLINK will add all newly published titles through 2025, then OhioLINK will purchase a subset for permanent access. Covers all subjects, with particular focus on area studies, history, and political science. - Routledge HandbooksAround 2,700 handbooks providing up-to-date overviews of classic and current research across the Humanities, Social Sciences, Education, Psychology, Engineering, and Built Environment from Routledge and CRC Press.
Best Bets: Book chapters representing a variety of research topic.
- Very Short IntroductionsHundreds of short ebooks (around 100 pages each) that offer concise expert overviews of a diverse range of concepts. Subjects include climate, consciousness, game theory, ancient warfare, economics, and literary theory.
Alternate access link: http://proxy.ohiolink.edu:9099/login?url=https://academic.oup.com/pages/very-short-introductions - eBook Academic Collection (EBSCO)eBook Academic Collection provides access to thousands of multidisciplinary ebook titles representing a broad range of academic subject matter including titles from leading university presses such as Oxford University Press, State University of New York Press, Cambridge University Press, University of California Press, MIT Press, Harvard University Press and many others. Additional academic publishers include Elsevier Ltd.; Brill Academic Publishers; Taylor & Francis Ltd; Sage Publications, Ltd. and John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Additional encyclopedias for specific subject areas
- Berg Fashion Library
The Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion features over 2,000 images and 800 in-depth articles that examine global dress cultures throughout history. It adopts a cross-cultural and multidisciplinary approach to highlight the richness of fashion. Additional reference works include Classic and Modern Writings on Fashion, the A-Z of Fashion, and The Dictionary of Fashion History, along with 200+ academic books on significant fashion writings. The encyclopedia also offers access to museum exhibitions and over 17,000 color images from renowned institutions, plus teaching resources like lesson plans and bibliographic guides.
- Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyThousands of entries on people, concepts, books, and other topics in philosophy written by experts in the field.
Questions to help your pre-search
When get started in your pre-search, there are some basic questions you want to ask yourself.
What is the assignment criteria?
Make a list of the assignment criteria
- What kinds of sources am I allowed to use?
- How many sources should I have?
- Is there a time frame for your sources? (this mostly pertains to secondary source)
If you have any questions about your assignment - now is the time to clarify them with your professor.
What information do you need?
After making sure you understand the criteria outlined in the assignment, ask yourself what information would help you answer your research question?
Background and context might include:
- finding definitions or explanations for unknown terms or vocabulary related to your topic
- finding examples
- identifying key figures involved in the discussion (stakeholders or interested parties)
- identifying events related to your topic
- considering related concepts
- understanding the history and/or timeline
Helpful Hit: The sources you find in your pre-search are most likely NOT the sources you will eventually cite in your research papers. The pre-search sources are for the purpose of solidifying your understanding and help you generate search terms before you begin searching for scholarly/peer-reviewed articles or studies.