JSTOR and the Building Block Search

I had never use the search engine JSTOR, so I wanted to search through it with a search method I was used to dealing with, like the Building Block. Keeping in mind my original question of finding out about youth library programs and their effect on the community, I set about naming my facets.

Facet 1: youth services
Facet 2: public libraries
Facet 3: community

I wanted to start off simple and get more specific through the search, because as my other tests have shown me, starting off too specific may make me backtrack and waste some time.

Search 1: (youth service*) AND (public librar*) AND (communit*)

I think I have figured searching terms out – I receive 265 results. Now I just need to get more specific and possibly add another facet or two.

Facet 4: programs

Search 2: (youth service*) AND (public librar*) AND (communit*) AND (program*)

That may have been too specific because I got no results. What I am really interested in is youth service library programs, so I switch around my search a little.

Search 3: (youth service*) AND (public librar*) AND (program*)

This expanded my result base quite a bit (over 300 more results), but I think I should add something at the end to indicate that I would like to find out about the benefits to having programs.

Search 4: (youth service*) AND (public librar*) AND (program*) AND (benefit*)

JSTOR told me I had too many “wildcards” and needed to limit them, so then my search became : (youth service*) AND (public library) AND (program*) AND (benefit*).

I received 203 results with this, which is getting better, but I still wanted to narrow everything down a bit more.

Search 5: teens AND (youth service*) AND (public libraries) AND (program*) AND (benefit*)

Success! This narrowed down the field to a workable 37 results (once I limited where JSTOR was searching for entries, that is), and even though I did not find something that was particularly about after-school programs in libraries, it did include some information about the topic.

Here is the article:
Youth as People: The Protective Aspects of Youth Development in After-School Settings
Author(s): Heather Johnston Nicholson, Christopher Collins and Heidi Holmer
Source: Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 591, Positive Development: Realizing the Potential of Youth (Jan., 2004), pp. 55-71
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc. in association with the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4127635