## 3.2.5 Subject index/Thesaurus

If you use good search terms, you are more likely to find relevant information. Most databases use a specific keyword for a subject. If you know which keyword it is, you can easily find all the information linked to it in the database

What is a subject index?
A subject index is a list of terms and definitions from a certain subject area (for example, Healthcare). Other names you may come across for this purpose are: Thesaurus, MeSH-terms, subject headings, or subject terms. There are databases where you can search through such a list of keywords. For example, PubMed and the databases of EBSCO (such as Academic Search Complete and ERIC). A keyword will look like this in the database Academic Search Complete:

Image: adapted from Academic Search Complete

Broader, narrower, related
If you find a term in the hit list, it also has 'relations'. Relations are other keywords related to the subject and are broader terms, narrower terms, or related terms. For example, For 'Sleep' 'subcounsciousness' is a broader term, a narrower term is 'naps' and related to sleep is 'dreams' (see the image above). In this way you will find new angles and keywords to search for information in a more specific or broader way.

Give it a try!
1. Go to EBSCOhost Portal, choose Multidisciplinary and click on 'Continue'.
Next click on Subject Terms in the top bar.

2. Enter a term.

3. You will get a list with search terms. Check one of the terms and then click on 'Add'.

- You can add and combine different terms here with AND or OR.
- If you are looking for more information about a term, click on it; you will get the description and relations

4. Start search process: