The Concept Map in SLUth - Search Plus enables you to graphically explore subjects or concepts related to your keyword search and further refine results to those most useful in your research.
To use the Concept Map from SLUth Search Plus:
1. Enter your search terms in the SLUth Search Plus box on the SLU Libraries homepage and click Search.
2. Click the Search Concept Map link on the result list screen.
Note: Because Concept Map opens in a new browser window or tab, you may need to disable your browser's pop-up blocker to open Concept Map.
3. Select the context in which you would like that topic to display in the Concept Map.
4. Navigate the Concept Map by clicking and dragging your pointer around to move the topics around the map.
5. Click a topic to view information about it and click Add to search in the window if you would like to add it to the Search Builder.
6. You can continue to add more topics to the search builder. As you add topics, you can click the Content Preview button to see a preview of your search results.
7. When you are finished adding topics to the Builder, click the See Full Results button to execute a search for your terms on EDS.
Note: You can click the Boolean operator in the Search Builder to change it. For example, click AND to change it to OR.
8. Your results are displayed on EDS and your search terms populate the search box.
Q. What if I build a search in the Concept Map and it returns no results in SLUth Search Plus?
Try a keyword search instead of a Boolean search. Click on Search Options under the search box. Then, under Search Modes, select Find all my search terms and click Search.
Q. How do I return to the center the Concept Map after navigating around the topics?
Click the Go to center button at the bottom of the Concept Map window to return the main concept to the center of the map.
Q. Can I view Topics in the Concept Map in multiple languages?
Yes. Click the menu icon in the upper-left corner of the screen. Then select a language from the Display topics in drop-down menu to view Concept Map topics translated into that language.
Q. How do Relationships work in the Concept Map?
You can use Relationships to view other topics related to your main topic based on their relationship.
In this example (Italy), selecting the “member of” relationship displays international groups of which Italy is a member. These additional topics can also be added to the Search Builder to view results on EBSCO Discovery Service.
What is the source of data for the Concept Map?
The main data source of the Concept Map’s “circles” are the vocabularies in EBSCO’s subject indexing (see here for details). Mining from vocabulary metadata along with full-text content is used for established relationships between concepts (i.e., lines between circles in the Concept Map).