Just the Facts

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Just the Facts!

• Using the Web to Conduct Research and Find Good
  Stuff Fast

Jessica Hinkson Manager of Information
Services Center for College Health and
Safety, Education Development Center, Inc.
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What topics will we cover?

• Where to look for quality information
• How to increase your odds of finding what you
  want using basic search strategies
• How to evaluate sources of information
• Electronic resources you need to know about
• Useful tips and tricks

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Snapshot of Annual High-Risk Drinking Consequences

• Death 1,700 college students between the ages of
  18 and 24 die each year from alcohol-related
  unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle
  crashes (Hingson et al., 2005).
• Injury 500,000 students between the ages of 18
  and 24 are unintentionally injured under the
  influence of alcohol (Hingson et al., 2005).
• Assault More than 600,000 students between the
  ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another
  student who has been drinking (Hingson et al.,
  2005).
• Sexual Abuse More than 70,000 students between
  the ages of 18 and 24 are victims of
  alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape
  (Hingson et al., 2005).
• Drunk Driving 2.8 million students between the
  ages of 18 and 24 drove under the influence of
  alcohol last year (Hingson et al., 2005).

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Finding general info vs. peer-reviewed research

• Important to identify type of information desired
  BEFORE beginning to search
• World Wide Web generally useful for finding
  resources, topic overviews, programmatic info,
  media campaigns, government reports, etc.
• Full-text peer-reviewed research harder to come
  by without paid access, but free availability
  increasing

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Tips for successful searching

• Be specific. Choose your works carefully and
  attempt many different ways of wording the
  search.
• Use lower-case letters. This will yield better
  results overall.
• Use quotes. When looking for a particular phrase
  or name, put quotes around it.
• Use Boolean searches. Make use of the words
  AND(), OR, and NOT(-) to further specify your
  search.
• Truncate, truncate, truncate! One little goes
  a long way.
• Try several search engines. Each search engine
  searches different web pages.
• Use online help. Each search engine and
  directory has a help section. Become familiar
  with their searching tips.

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So before you being your search

• Lift keywords from journal articles you know
  youre interested in!
• What specific words, phrases, and names will
  occur in the documents I want?
• What unique terms, names, organizations?
• What phrases or word strings?
• What equivalent or interchangeable terms?
• Think the unthinkable attempt a very specific
  search and see what you find!

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As you move forward

• Keep a list of the terms you use in your search
• Make note of how successful each combination was
• Some databases keep list for you, with number of
  hits noted

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Evaluating your source

• Beware anyone can post information to the
  Internet!
• Who is the author of the page? Is contact info
  provided?
• Do you know the publisher, or the
  company/organization hosting the page?
• Is the page dated? Is it current?
• What is the authors bias and tone?
• Are there links to other viewpoints?
• If it is a published piece, is it an unmodified
  version?

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Searching Using Academic Databases

• EBSCO InfoTrac
• Check all databases to do thorough search, then
  continue
• Default fields to start, then limit and narrow
  search as necessary
• Can set up journal alerts on specific titles
  (e.g. Journal of American College Health)

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Free Searchable Databases

• NIAAAs Database of AOD Databases!
• http//etoh.niaaa.nih.gov/Databases.htm
• NIAAAs Alcohol and Alcohol Problems Science
  Database (ETOH)
• http//etoh.niaaa.nih.gov/Archive.htm
• ERIC Education Resources Information Center
• http//eric.ed.gov
• Marin Institute Alcohol Industry Database
• http//www.crewnoble.com/MarinInstitute/
• NIAAAs Alcohol Policy Information System
• http//alcoholpolicy.niaaa.nih.gov/

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Useful Websites

• Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other
  Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention
• http//www.edc.org/hec/
• NIAAA - Full-text college alcohol policies
• http//www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/policies
  /
• Alcohol Epidemiology Program at UMinn
• http//www.epi.umn.edu/alcohol/
• PREVLINE
• http//www.health.org
• Google Scholar
• http//scholar.google.com/
• PA Network site
• http//pa.thenetwork.ws/
• PAs Liquor Control Board
• http//www.lcb.state.pa.us/

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How to Find Full-Text Articles

• Google to the rescue!
• Search for exact title, in quotes
• Search for the author, last name and first
  initial
• Academic library databases (online)
• Identify and bookmark
• Library catalog (hard copy)
• Purchase online from journal
• Inter-library loan (check with your librarian)

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Sources of National Data

• Monitoring the Future http//monitoringthefuture.
  org/
• Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol
  Study http//www.hsph.harvard.edu/cas
• The Core Institute http//www.siu.edu/coreinst/

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Finding Info When You Have Leads

• A Matter of Degree program evaluation
• Elissa R. Weitzman and Colleagues
• Harvard School of Public Health
• American Journal of Preventive Medicine 2004

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Why the new Google toolbar is the best thing
since sliced bread

• Quick and easy to download
• Allows user to search within any site
• Functions much like the Find feature in Word
  (i.e. searches within a site, but often finds
  more than the URLs own built-in search feature)
• Saves time from opening new browser window
• Tracks search phrases used
• Highlight search terms on a page
• Popup blocker
• Google images
• in front of search terms to find synonymous
  terms
• Define to search for definitions
• Google.com Google Services Tools
• Finally, review Google search tips!!

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Tips for Staying Current

• Let the experts do the searching for you!
• Sign up for news alerts (once!) and let the new
  research come to you
• Develop your search strategy (once!) and use it
  routinely

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Top Journals in College Health

• Addictive Behaviors
• Addiction
• Alcoholism Clinical Experimental Research
• Journal of American College Health
• Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
• Journal of Drug Education
• Journal of Studies on Alcohol
• Psychology of Addictive Behaviors

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Required Reading for College AOD Prevention

• NIAAA college drinking reports
  http//www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/Reports/
  
• NAS/IOM report, Reducing Underage Drinking A
  Collective Responsibility
• http//www.iom.edu/report.asp?id15100
• Authors updates

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Electronic Information Delivery

• HEC/News news articles, new research,
  conferences, gray literature, etc.
• http//www.edc.org/hec/news/hecnews-instructions.
  html
• Robert Chapmans News from the Front
• http//thenetworkws.blogspot.com/
• Marin Institute Alcohol News
• http//www.marininstitute.org/alcohol_industry/di
  gests/archive.htm
• Join Together Online Direct
• http//www.jointogether.org/about/web/jtodirect/

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Human Resources

• Center for College Health and Safety
  http//www2.edc.org/cchs/
• Higher Education Center for Alcohol, Other Drug,
  and Violence Prevention
• http//www.edc.org/hec/
• RADAR Network Center http//ncadi.samhsa.gov/rada
  r/
• Network regional coordinator, Robert Chapman!
• http//www.thenetwork.ws/coordinators.htm
• Statewide initiative leader
• http//www.edc.org/hec/swi/

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More Tips and Tricks

• Alt Tab - to switch from application to
  application
• Ctrl Home or End - to move to beginning or
  end of document
• Alt Prnt Scrn, then paste to capture
  screen shot to incorporate to an e-mail or
  other document
• Ctrl Enter to automatically add http// and
  .com to URL
• No need for http// or www anymore

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Further Reading and Exploration

• Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other
  Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention
• http//www.edc.org/hec
• Google
• Google Toolbar - http//toolbar.google.com/
• Google Desktop - http//desktop.google.com/
• Google Scholar http//scholar.google.com
• Finding Information on the Internet, The
  University of California, Berkeley
• http//www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/I
  nternet/FindInfo.html
• Evaluating Web Pages http//www.lib.berkeley.edu
  /TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
• Infopeople Best Search Engines
• http//infopeople.org/search/guide.html

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Thanks for coming!

• Jessica Hinkson
• Manager of Information Services
• Center for College Health and Safety,
• Education Development Center, Inc.
• jhinkson_at_edc.org
• 800-676-1730, ext. 2285