Adler University Library: Research Process: Use Subject Headings

Subject headings defined

What:

The most specific word or phrase for a topic/subject, from a list of controlled vocabulary. You can use subject headings to find articles on a particular topic within a database by using the database’s thesaurus.

Why:
Works on the same subject are grouped together so you can find relevant resources

Where:

Library catalogs to find books
In databases to find articles, books, and other resources.

How:
See the following boxes on applying the use of subject headings for finding books and articles.

Subject headings vs. keywords

Keywords	Subject Headings
Natural language - user generated	Controlled vocabulary used to describe a subject
Could appear only once - anywhere in abstract or title	Database applies subject headings to each resource, based on topic/subject of resource (adds specificity to your search)
No related terms are found, but homonyms might be (words spelled the same, but with different meanings)	Exist in a thesaurus, so helps you find related terms, weed out homonyms
Like using Ctrl+F in a document	All variations (spellings) are covered
Useful when: topic is very new, or looking for specific person/organization	Useful when: topic has established academic research on it, and you want highly relevant results

Search terms to subject headings

Searching by keyword means you'll find articles that have the exact letters of a word you typed, somewhere in the title or abstract. This means a search for PTSD will not include resources on trauma, nor on PTS. It also means that homonyms, like "lead" can be confused between the metal and the verb.

Searching by subject heading groups articles together by concepts/topics, not words. That means that subject headings can help you find works on "Individual Psychology" by starting with the subject heading "Adler, Alfred".