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Keywords are words or phrases that can appear anywhere in the item (citation data or full text of a book or an article). Keyword searching is how you typically search web search engines and it is a good start to find relevant subject headings in databases.
Subject headings are formally assigned, standardized set of terms (also called descriptors) within a database to identify the primary topics of a book or an article.
It is not easy to guess which subject headings are used in a given database. For example, you have a keyword "wage gap" in mind but the closest subject headings for this concept is "wage differential" in the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global database.
Here are some key points about each type of search:
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When you search a database and do not get the results you expect, Contact us for advice.
Keyword searches
Start with a keyword search, using words/phrases that describe your topic.
Browse the results; choose 2 or 3 items that are relevant.
Look at the Subject or Descriptor field and note the subject terms used.
Redo your search using those terms.
Your results will be more precise than your initial keyword search.
Limitations of subject headings: for very new concepts e.g. "illiberal democracy" the databases may not have current subject terms.
Thesauri
Look to see if the database has an online thesaurus to browse for subjects that match your topic (check the Help screens).