Washington and Lee University Information Fluency & Quantitative Analysis

A quick check to see the variety and quantity of information on your topic can save you a lot of trouble and time later in the term. You don't want a topic for which there is little or no information available. It is best to start with general terms and then narrow down to the specific as you refine your topic.

Choose topic
Check Annie for encyclopedias (general and/or subject depending on topic), handbooks, and textbooks.
for encyclopedias, search by keyword: keyword or phrase and s:encyclopedias
(example: economic* and development* and s:encyclopedias)
for handbooks, search by keyword: keywords or phrase and s:handbooks
(example: economic* and development* and s:handbooks)
Check general indexes (ProQuest Research Library or Expanded Academic Index)
(Pay attention to the type of articles you retrieve, are they popular or scholarly?)
Check for statistical sources (the Statistical Abstract of the United States and almanacs are good places to check for many topics to see what types of data are available).