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Human Factors Search Tips and Sample Search

Topic: human factors considerations for pilots

Try this search:

"human factors" and (aircraft or airplane) and pilot*

The "and" ensures that each term is present somewhere in the search results, but the words don't necessarily have to be adjacent or in a specific order.
The asterisk (*) is a truncation symbol which allows the computer to search for variant word endings such as pilot, piloting, pilots, etc.
In many databases, the quotation marks indicate that the words must be searched as a phrase, i.e., in that exact order and adjacent to each other.
The "or" indicates that the terms so linked should be treated as synonyms. The parentheses ensure that all enclosed terms will be retrieved first before the "and" command is executed.

Too many or too few documents? There are various ways to refine the search.

Narrow the search:

In the CSA databases (Aerospace/NTIS and PsycINFO), for example, click on one of the tabs at the top of the results screen to limit results to specific types of documents. These can include: Journals, Peer-Reviewed Journals, Conferences, Books, Documents, etc.
Remove synonyms, some Boolean connectors (and, or) and truncation symbols:

Add another keyword or phrase. For example, add the keyword "fatigue":

"Human factors" and "aircraft pilot*" and fatigue

Broaden the search:

Try removing the least important keyword or phrase. For example:

"Human factors" and "aircraft pilot*" and fatigue becomes:

Focus the search:

In the Aerospace/NTIS and PsycINFO databases, look for other possible terms to use as you read through the abstracts. Also, look at the line labeled Descriptors. This is where the database editors list the main subjects they think the document covers; it's a good source for related terms. Most databases include a descriptor or subject term line.