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Research Shortcuts, Revised edition
by Judi Kesselman-Turkel & Franklynn Peterson
A useful, if flawed, guide to researching and writing term papers and reports.
Research Shortcuts is a practical, no-nonsense guide to writing term papers for school, but it could also be used by business people who are putting together research reports. There is one major problem with the book, which will be addressed below. However, I'd like to start by mentioning a number of positive things about it.
First, at 106 pages, the book is brief and the authors waste no time getting to the points they want to make. One could almost skim the book by reading the
well-laid-out Table of Contents. Part One addresses some preliminary chores a researcher should do in selecting a topic and formulating the approach. These include knowing what the subject really is and who the audience will be. The authors also suggest constructing a working outline, which includes specific questions that the researcher will try to answer.
Moving to Part Two, the authors discuss the nitty-gritty details of taking notes and suggests specific time-saving approaches. Skipping to Part Four the authors write about what they call the “Unexplored Territory” of research and they offer helpful advice about getting information by speaking directly with experts or contacting them in writing. Part Five provides recommendations about writing the paper and citing sources.
It is in Part Three that the problem lies and it deals with library research. This edition of Research Shortcuts is a revision of a book that first appeared in 1982. Library research has been revolutionized since that time, but the authors only skim the surface of these changes. For instance, they describe how to search card catalogs, when many, if not most sizable libraries, have discarded their card catalogs in favor of online versions. They also mention, in the index, The Readers Guide to Periodical Literature, which, in 1982, was a standard guide to finding magazine articles, but has been superceded in some measure by massive online databases such as EbscoHost and ProQuest Direct.
The book also mentions a database the authors call Nexus/Lexus, which correctly is LexisNexis. The authors do talk briefly about searching the internet, but they do not include one the most important caveats about that resource and much of what can be found there has been written by people whose level of
expertise is either unknown or very low. There are a number of other smaller indications that those who revised the book are not familiar with current research methods and sources. The information is not necessarily wrong, just outdated. It should be stated that, even in Part Three, there is some valuable input; e.g., the outlines of the Library of Congress and Dewey Decimal systems, and the suggestion that the researcher should locate a good librarian.
So, use the valuable advice the authors have provided, but be wary of some
of the material in Part Three.
Title: Research Shortcuts, Revised edition
Author: Judi Kesselman-Turkel & Franklynn Peterson
Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
ISBN: 0299191648
Review written by: William Keogan
Reviewer's Rating:7
Reader's Rating: 0
Reader's Votes: 0
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