Basic Search

Basic Search is an ideal way to get started with ProQuest. Just think of a word or phrase related to the information you're looking for and type it into the computer.

See hints on improving your searches for some tips on creating searches. See frequently asked questions on Basic searches for answers to some common questions.

Basic Search:

1. Enter a word or phrase into the search field.
2. Click Search.

You can focus your search with the following options (some are only available after clicking on More Options):

• Limit your search to articles by a specific Author.
• Select a specific Database.
• Set a Date range.
• Limit your search to a specific Document Type.
• Look for terms in
• Select how to sort your results.

^Back to top

Author

Enter an author's name to limit your search to articles written by a specific author or reviewer.

You can enter the author's name in any order. Searching the author field for John A. Smith produces the same results as searching for Smith, John A.

You can enter multiple author's names, separating them by AND to find articles by two authors.

For more information on using this field, see the Search Tips.

^Back to top

Database

The Database field lets you limit your search to a specific database available from ProQuest. The default for this field is the database you are currently searching (or multiple databases, if you are searching more than one database).

• Select a specific database from the drop-down menu to limit your search to a single database.
• Click Select Multiple Databases to select multiple databases.

^Back to top

Date Range (Custom)

To limit your search, select the radio button for one of the predefined date ranges:

• On this date (the specific date you define)
  
• Before this date (records published before the date you specify)
  
• From / To (the range of dates you specify)
  

For information on the date formats ProQuest supports, see the date formats reference.

^Back to top

Document Type

By default, ProQuest searches all document types. To limit your search to a specific document type (for example, bibliography, book chapter, or journal article), select that document type from the drop-down menu.

For more information on using this field, see the Search Tips.

^Back to top

Look for terms in

Select Citation and abstract from the drop-down menu to search only within the citations and abstracts in ProQuest. Select Citation and document text to search within the complete text of the article, the citation fields, and the abstract.

Searching in Citation and abstract is more likely to find articles whose main focus meets your search terms. Searching in Citation and document text will find more articles, because it will find articles that mention your search terms anywhere within the article.

When you search just the citations and abstracts, ProQuest searches the following fields:

• Author
  
• Personal Name
  
• Abstract
  
• Product Name
  
• Document Title
  
• Subject Terms
  
• Company Name
  
• Source (publication title)
  
• Geographical Name
  

^Back to top

Natural Language Search

Searches are intercepted and translated using a natural language search engine. This lets you enter your search as a question or a sentence. The search engine will translate the entry to find the keywords by their position in the sentence.

^Back to top

Sort Results by

This field lets you select how you want your results sorted. The options that are available here depend on the database or databases you are currently searching. For example, you may be able to sort records by most relevant, or to display the oldest records first.

Select the desired search order from the drop-down menu.

You can change your sort order on the Results page by using the Sort results by drop-down menu.

^Back to top