Broaden your search to increase search results and narrow your search to decrease search results. Use the following table to estimate the appropriate number of documents for a substantial research project.
Results
Action
Strategies
Too few
(5 documents)
Broaden your search
Use the OR operator
Use truncation
Just right the right number
(30 documents)
Review search results for appropriate materials
30 relevant documents should enable you to make a good start on your research project.
Too many
(200 documents)
Narrow your search
Use the AND operator
Use the NOT operator
Use limits
