Before you start searching, it's important that you take the time to write down your thesis, or research question, and come up with some alternate keywords for your search. Not everyone is going to talk about your topic in the same way, so you want to have a variety of words and phrases on hand. This page includes some resources for helping you do this with your research topic.
It is important to have a topic that is both manageable and researchable. One process that will help you do this is choosing "keywords" and then brainstorming synonyms, related terms, and more specific terms with which you can also search.
If you are having a hard time brainstorming, you may want to try one of these useful graphic dictionaries that help find synonyms.
Thesauri are also worth searching for synonyms.
When brainstorming it sometimes helps to have a visual representation of what you are doing, beyond just a simple list. The below are some online resources that can help you diagram or map concepts.
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