Library Homepage: How to Find Articles: Results & Relevance

Understanding Database Results

Library databases return content and filter results based on:

what keywords are searched. e.g. nursing will return nursing, NOT nurses or healthcare
what limiters were applied, e.g. full-text, peer-review

Library databases DO NOT filter results based on:

Questions to consider when determining relevance

what is the central question/thesis of the work?
what is the research methodology and instrument for gathering data/evidence? e.g. interviews, questionnaires?
are the conclusions or results relevant?
can the data be used to make statements across populations (scholarly, academic research)?
are the results specific to a population (hospital study or limited by the institution and therefore credible but not scholarly)?
did the researchers involve their peers, or did they publish without peer review?