Thesaurus

The ProQuest thesaurus is a list of words and phrases, or subject terms, used to index documents in ProQuest collections. The thesaurus is also known as a "subject list" or a "controlled vocabulary." The Thesaurus tool displays a list of thesaurus terms. You can also download a printable (PDF) version of the thesaurus from the ProQuest website.

The CINAHL® and ERIC databases use their own custom thesaurus.

You can browse the list of terms, or enter a term in the find field, then click Find Term to locate it.

When you have found a term you want to add to your search, select the operator to use when adding the term, and click Add to Search.

• Find a term
• Thesaurus Tools
• Add a term to your search
• Select an operator for adding terms
• Explode a Search Term
• View Browse List
• Get the complete vocabulary

Find a term

The terms listed in the Thesaurus list are based on terms found in the ProQuest thesaurus, a set of specialized terms used to categorize information in ProQuest. They are listed in alphabetical order, making it easy for you to browse them.

Scan the list for the term you want to use for your search.

Jump to terms starting with a particular letter by selecting the letter from the list.

You can also search for a term. Enter the term in the box and click Find Term. You will be taken to the nearest match (alphabetically).

If you reach the end of a page and haven't come to the term you want, just click a page number to advance to that page of the list.

Thesaurus Tools

Beneath each term you'll see linked words and phrases associated with the term you found. These words and phrases are categorized using the following criteria:

• Use for (synonymous concepts pointing you to authorized terms).
• Use instead (preferred thesaurus terms for your search)
  
• Narrower terms (more restrictive terms associated with a subset of records)
  
• Broader terms (less restrictive terms associated with a larger set of records)
  
• Related terms (similar terms suggested for use with your search)
  

For some terms, you'll also find:

• Scope Note Notes on the term and its significance.
• History Note Explains where to find information on this term in previous years.
• Year of Publication The year the selected term or broader/narrower/related terms appeared in the database is displayed in superscript.
  

Click any of these linked words and phrases to jump to details associated with them.

Add a term to your search

Once you have found a term, select the operator to use when adding the term to your search and click Add to Search.

If a query existed in the search field, then this term is appended to the existing query along with the selected operator.

Select an operator for adding terms

You can add the terms you find to your search using AND, OR, or AND NOT.

View Browse Lists

If your database collection supports the use of Browse Lists, you can switch to this tool by clicking Browse Topics at the top of the window.

Exploding a Search Term

To explode a term, click View exploded results.

Get the Complete Vocabulary

Several ProQuest Professional Research Collections use a unique thesaurus, sometimes called a subject list or controlled vocabulary. This thesaurus is a list of words and phrases, or subject terms, used to index records in the collection.

The ProQuest thesaurus is a list of words and phrases, or subject terms, used to index documents in the ProQuest collections. The thesaurus is also known as a "subject list" or a "controlled vocabulary." The Thesaurus tool displays a list of thesaurus terms. You can also download a printable (PDF) version of the thesaurus from the ProQuest Co. website.

The CINAHL® thesaurus contains the list of word and phrases used to index documents in the CINAHL® ProQuest Professional Research Collection. You can order a print version of the CINAHL® Subject Heading List directly from CINAHL® Information Systems. Contact CINAHL® Information Systems by visiting their web site at http://www.cinahl.com.

The PsycINFO® thesaurus contains the list of words and phrases used to index documents in the PsycINFO® ProQuest Professional Research collection. You can order a print version of the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms from their web site at http://www.apa.org.

The ERIC thesaurus contains the list of words and phrases used to index documents in the thesaurus used for indexing documents in the ERIC ProQuest Professional Research Collection. You'll also find information about the ERIC thesaurus online at the ERIC Processing and Reference Facility at http://www.ericfacility.net/extra/pub/thessearch.cfm.