ISYS3015Analytical Methods for
Information systems professionals
Week 3 Lecture 1: Finding the literature
The Research Process
• Slides of Powerpoint and additional notes are at
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/subjects/infotech/
The Research Process
• Descriptive research – “finding out”
• Explanatory research – “why something is the way it is”
• Evaluative research – “evaluation of strategies”
The Research Process
• Assoc.Prof Joseph Davis – “interactive process”• What is the question – selecting the research
topic• Conceptual framework – identifying and
defining the key concepts and then exploring the relationship between them
• Data gathering • Data analysis
The Research Process
• Parallels with Descriptive research
• Descriptive research involves an interactive process –
• Create a search strategy, try, review, modify, try, review, modify, complete
The Research Process
• Research topic
• “The Literature”
• Drafting a search strategy
• Electronic databases
• Evaluating the search strategy and citations
• Citing the references
The Research Process
• Selecting the research topic - define the question – know what your research topic is!
• Study it –
• Disembowel it!
• Know it intimately
The Research Process
• Identify key concepts
• Define the key concepts
• Exploring the relationship between the concepts in the question or research topic
The Research Process
• Think
• Talk about it to peers and experts
• Good time management skills – give yourself time for the issues to brew in your mind!
The Research Process
• Example:
• The use of mobile computing in the health care industry
• Key concepts –
• Mobile computing
• Health care industry
The Research Process
• Mobile computing – hand held devices, wireless technology, wireless communication
• Health care industry – Hospitals, ambulances, GPs, patient to carry the device, nursing homes, patient at home?
• Research topic may be further refined!
The Research Process
• “The Literature”
• What is the literature?
• “Previous writing and research is known as the literature.” – Ticehurst, p.59
• Vaste sea of documents
The Research Process
• How does one extract from this massive monolith the documents that will assist you to handle your research topic?
• Index of the literature – electronic database index
• Convert your research topic into a search strategy
The Research Process
Search strategies
• Key concepts –Synonyms
• Plural/singular or both?
• Acronym and/or spelt out – SLA or Service level agreement/s
• Broader terms/narrower terms
The Research Process
• Expressing the relationship between the terms in your search strategy
• Boolean operators
• AND
• OR
• NOT
The Research Process
Example of a Search strategy
• The use of mobile computing in the health care industry
• Strategy 1=mobile computing and health
• Strategy2=mobile computing & health care
• Strategy 2=hand held devices and health care
The Research Process
• Strategy 3= mobile comput* and medic* (truncation?)
• Strategy depends on the capacity of the database in which you wish to enter it.
• Check the HELP screens to see how the database handles the search
The Research Process
• Electronic database – index to the literature
• Indexed the “peer-reviewed” journal literature
• A database may cover a wide subject area – such as Web of Science or ScienceDirect
The Research Process
• May include the research publications of a professional society – ACM Digital Library is an example where the fulltext of the documents is made available.
• May focus on a particular subject area – SOCIOFILE or PsycINFO as given in Ticehurst p. 64
The Research Process
• For a listing of databases check the Library’s page at
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/databases
• To see if and how to use the database from your home PC, see
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/databases
The Research Process
• Example –
• Medline
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/
• Searching and reviewing the relevant records gives ideas of other meanings, broader possibilities
The Research Process
• Have a look at the records
• Do they give useful subject terms?
• Do the references point to previously not thought of possibilities?
• Do we see a broader perspective?
• Do we need to narrow the search?
The Research Process
• Searching and working with a search strategy is a Dynamic process –
• Implement the search strategy
• Review the results
• Any relevant references?
• Need to change the search strategy?
The Research Process
• In OVID – Medline, Sociofile, PsycINFO click on Weblink to be taken to the Library catalogue and hopefully the record for the journal title.
• If the journal title is not displayed, search the Library Catalogue by journal title
The Research Process
• Web of Science
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/databases
• Citation index –
• From 1985-
• Click on “Holdings” to go to Library catalogue
• Search “mobile computing and health care”
The Research Process
• ACM Digital Library• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/databases• Contains bibliographic information,
abstracts, information, abstracts, reviews, and full-text information, abstracts, reviews, and the full-text for articles published in ACM periodicals and proceedings since 1985.
The Research Process
• Extra words – mobile hosts; • Mobile transaction processing• Wireless LAN• Portable devices• Pen input• Laptop/s• Medical devices which mobile computers???
The Research Process
• Proquest 5000
• http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/databases/
• Contains a number of databases such as ABI Inform (Ticehurst, p. 63) Proquest Computing
• Search all collections
• Use Search methods - Guided
The Research Process
• Proquest 5000
• Show results with full text availability only
• Show peer reviewed publications
• Extra words – PDAs /Personal digital assistants
The Research Process
Citing online references• A journal article in electronic form should be
cited as: • Author/s of article. (Year of publication) Title
of article. Journal Title [Online], vol numbering and page numbers. Available PROTOCOL: address and path, (date of visit).
The Research Process
• A journal article in a printed journal:
• Author/s of article. (Year of publication) Title of article. Journal Title, vol numbering and page numbers.