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How to Search in a Library Database

 

Database Search Tips

Use the databases on the SFCC Library: PNW History Guide Links to an external site.. Both databases have a collection of magazines, newspapers, and scholarly articles. 

To learn about library databases and how to search for articles, watch this video tutorial: 


Remember as you create your search terms, only use keywords, which are the significant words or concepts that express an idea or topic.

See the examples below:

 

 drones  AND  privacy

 surveillance  AND  ethics  AND  workplace

 surveillance  AND  "information technology"

"social media"  AND  surveillance  AND  (workplace  OR  employees)

"peer pressure"  AND  workplace  AND  ethic*

"young adults"  AND  "social networking"  AND  identity

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NOTES ABOUT SEARCH TECHNIQUES:

WHAT DOES THE ASTERISK DO? You can use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard. For example, typing statistic* will retrieve articles containing any word starting with the spelling s-t-a-t-i-s-t-i-c (like statistic, statistics, statistical, etc.).

WHAT DO THE QUOTATION MARKS DO? Use quotation marks ( "      " ) to enclose a phrase of 2 words or more; this will force ProQuest to search for articles with that exact phrase in the article. Examples: "homeless children"    "genetically modified food"

NOTES ABOUT NARROWING YOUR SEARCHES:

When you search in an article index database, notice the many facets on the left side of your results screen that let you further limit your results by:

    • Date
    • Source type
    • Location
    • Full text  To find only article you can real in full, tick the box title full text.
    • Peer reviewed (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. articles  Tick the box for Peer reviewed to narrow your search to only articles from scholarly journals which have been reviewed by a panel of worldwide subject experts before being approved for publication.
    • Other limitations  Try the ADVANCED SEARCH to use several limiters simultaneously, or ask a librarian for help.

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 Having trouble finding articles on your topic? 

 Finding relevant articles among the millions of articles in library databases can be difficult. Journal articles are about very narrow topics, so it may be hard to find research studies that exclusively discuss the exact topic you've chosen. Our advice is to find an article that's relevant to some aspect of your topic and contains information you can use to support your thesis. It's OK if the entire article isn't about your topic, but you should be able to use some portion of the article to strengthen your paper. Usually the the first few introductory paragraphs of a research study and the conclusion at the end will give background information on why the topic is of interest, why it's a problem, statistics, and what was learned. These introductions and conclusions can be rich sources of information for you.

Get help any time! Links to an external site. Finding relevant articles can be hard. Don't be shy about asking a librarian for help.

Links to an external site.)