ENG101: College Writing
Keyword Searching
Research in academic databases doesn't have to be frustrating! Break your thesis down into it's key components, or keywords, and search for them using Boolean operators (which are and, or, and not).
For example, if I am searching for articles about the impact of trauma on relationships I would search trauma AND relationships. If I were searching for articles about the impact of traumatic brain injuries on depression, I would search for "traumatic brain injury" AND depression.
If you get stuck, don't forget you can Book-A-Librarian!
Recommended Databases
- Academic OneFile (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Multi-disciplinary database containing mostly peer-reviewed, scholarly articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources. Over 8,000 academic journal titles are included with extensive coverage of the physical sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences, the arts, theology, literature and many other subjects. Also includes hundreds of podcasts and transcripts from NPR, CNN, and CBC, as well as full text New York Times content back to 1995. Coverage 1964 – present.
- Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
Designed for academic institutions, this database is a leading resource for scholarly research. It supports high-level research in the key areas of academic study by providing journals, periodicals, reports, books and more.
- CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
A database of in-depth, authoritative reports on a full range of political and social-policy issues extending back to 1923. Each report is footnoted and includes an overview, background section, chronology, bibliography and debate-style pro-con feature, plus tools to study the evolution of the topic over time.
- New York Times (NYT) Online Edition This link opens in a new windowNow Access the New York Times Online (digital) Edition! No more paywalls, access the NYT in real time, online. You will be asked to create an account, CLICK HERE for instructions and video instructions.
- Opposing Viewpoints In Context This link opens in a new window
Full text database providing essays from books, magazine and news articles, statistics, primary documents, and Web sites present diverse views on many issues. Also a great source of ideas for research papers.
- Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection This link opens in a new windowProvides nearly 575 full text publications, including 550 peer-reviewed journals and many indexed and abstracted references to articles. Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection covers topics such as emotional and behavioral characteristics, psychiatry & psychology, mental processes, anthropology, and observational and experimental methods. Nearly every full text title included in this database is indexed in PsycINFO. Coverage: 1965 – Present.
- Psychology OneFile (Gale) This link opens in a new windowProvide access to authoritative periodical content supporting research in all fields of psychology— abnormal, biological, cognitive, comparative, developmental, personality, quantitative, social and all areas of applied psychology. Researchers, psychologists, counselors, and behavioral scientists will discover relevant information from the thoughts, views, discoveries, and reports found in this comprehensive collection.
- Religion and Philosophy This link opens in a new windowWith hundreds of full-text, scholarly journals, Religion & Philosophy Collection provides an in-depth collection of resources covering topics such as world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, religious history, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of language, moral philosophy and the history of philosophy. Religion & Philosophy Collection provides coverage of key theological and philosophical resources spanning over 100 years.
- Religion and Philosophy OneFile (Gale) This link opens in a new windowThis database provides extensive coverage of such topics as world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, religious history, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of language, moral philosophy and the history of philosophy. Religion & Philosophy Collection offers more than 300 full text journals, including more than 250 peer-reviewed titles.
- ScienceDirect College Edition This link opens in a new windowScience Direct College Edition is a database of full-text, high quality journals published by Elsevier. This database consists of 2 different collections--Physical Sciences, and Health & Life Sciences. Citations & abstracts are provided for pre-1995 information and for Elsevier journals the library does not subscribe to. Most titles are from 1995 - present.
- Statista This link opens in a new window
Global data and business intelligence database with a collection of statistics, reports and insights on over 80,000 topics from 22,500 sources in 170 industries. Useful for discovering quantitative data about a subject.
