LibGuides: CSH1300: Integrated Research Methods & Statistics: Find Articles & Research

Tips for Effective Searching

Searching works best when you have a research question in mind. You should be able to identify key concepts related to your research. These concepts form the basis for your search terms.
Know your topic. Exploring general sources (a chapter in your textbook, an encyclopedia article or other background reading) is a good way to start. The better you undestand a topic, the easier it is to evaluate sources.
What is your purpose? You may be writing an argumentative or persuasive paper. Or, your assignment may require you to analyze research on a topic. Perhaps you are developing a slide presentation based on your evaluation of key sources.
Start early. Until you have done some searching and reading, you might not recognize if your topic is too broad or narrow.
Don't wait until the last minute. Good resources may not be available locally. Allow yourself time for an interlibrary loan.
Select resources appropriate for your topic. Your professor may ask that you use only peer-reviewed journals. Other professors may want you to use a combination of texts and articles, or news sources. Perhaps you will be doing primary research using interviews or observations.

Recommended Health databases

The following databases will help you locate information on a variety of nursing and health topics. Many of these databases offer full-text access to research, articles, and other publications. For a full list of the Library's databases, please visit our homepage: www.wpunj.edu/library

Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new window Large, interdisciplinary full-text database contains over 4,800 full-text publications, including academic journals, magazines, books, and trade publications. Offers broad subject coverage for a variety of disciplines, including anthropology, area studies, biology, chemistry, ethnic and multicultural studies, food science and technology, general science, geography, law, mathematics, music, pharmaceutical sciences, physics, psychology, religion and theology, women's studies, and many other fields. Funded by the the New Jersey State Library.
CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) with Full Text This link opens in a new window The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) is the most comprehensive resource for locating published research in nursing and allied health. The full text version includes content from over 600 journals indexed in the database, with many article backfiles extending to 1981. Frequently updated, CINAHL also provides searchers with current awareness of the newest journal articles through a rotating file of "Pre-CINAHL" records containing citation information and links to full-text (where available). [1981 - present]
Google Scholar (Full Text @ Cheng Library) This link opens in a new window Access full-text articles from the Library's subscription e-journals using the familiar Google search engine. For access to our subscription journals through Google Scholar, select the link above and then follow these steps: 1. Click on the top-left corner menu on the screen 2. Select "Settings" from the menu 3. On the next page, select "Library links" from the menu on the left side of the screen 4. Type "cheng" in the search field and run the search 5. Select "David and Lorraine Cheng Library - Full Text@Cheng Library" and then click on the "Save" button This will enable you to see the "Full Text@Cheng Library" links displayed with your search results.
Health and Psychosocial Instruments (HaPI) This link opens in a new window The Health and Psychosocial Instruments database provides access to information on measurement instruments (i.e., questionnaires, interview schedules, checklists, index measures, coding schemes and manuals, rating scales, projective techniques, vignettes and scenarios, tests) in the health fields, psychosocial sciences, organizational behavior, and library and information science. [1985 - present]
Gale Health and Wellness (formerly Health and Wellness Resource Center) This link opens in a new window Gale Health and Wellness provides access to medical, statistical, health, and related information from reference sources, full-text articles and other resources. [1997 - present]
Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine (formerly Health Reference Center Academic) This link opens in a new window Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine contains up-to-date information on a wide variety of health care topics. With more than 2,500 embargo-free, full-text periodicals, reference books, pamphlets, and hundreds of videos demonstrating medical procedures and live surgeries, Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine provides current, scholarly, comprehensive information on health-related topics.
MEDLINE (via ProQuest) This link opens in a new window MEDLINE provides access to the research literature of medicine and the health sciences. It includes bibliographic information for articles from academic journals covering medicine, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, and health care, plus links to full-text content where this is available. The database currently includes over 18 million records from approximately 5,000 selected publications covering biomedicine and health from 1950 to the present. [1950 - Present]
MEDLINE (via PubMed) This link opens in a new window MEDLINE provides access to the research literature of medicine and the health sciences. It includes bibliographic information for articles from academic journals covering medicine, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, and health care, plus links to full-text content where this is available. [1966 - present]
PsycARTICLES This link opens in a new window PsycARTICLES offers complete access to the full text of more than 80 landmark journals in behavioral science and related fields ranging from education, to nursing, to business, to neuroscience. The database currently contains over 160,000 articles from many of the most important journals in psychology, including 34 journals published by the American Psychological Association. Most titles feature complete content from the current issue back to volume 1, issue 1, with complete coverage of all subject areas relevant to psychological science including basic/experimental psychology, clinical psychology, developmental psychology, education and school psychology, health psychology, industrial/organizational psychology, social psychology and social processes. Articles in PsycARTICLES are also accessible through links in the (larger) PsycINFO database. [1894 - present]
PsycINFO This link opens in a new window PsycINFO is the principal abstracting and indexing database covering peer-reviewed literature in the behavioral sciences and mental health. The database currently contains over 3.3 million records for articles from over 2,500 journals, books, and dissertations. Although the major focus of the database is psychology, it also includes information about the psychological aspects of related fields such as medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, technology, linguistics, anthropology, business, law, and others. The records in PsycINFO are organized by a rigorous and detailed system of subject classification to support high-precision searching, and links to full-text content are provided where available. [1887 - present]
PsycTESTS This link opens in a new window PsycTESTS is a research database from the American Psychological Association that provides access to psychological tests, measures, scales, surveys, and other assessments as well as descriptive information about the test and its development and administration. The database currently includes over 20,000 records and over 15,000 instances of actual tests or test items. [1910 - Present]
Salem Health (Full-Text Health Reference Titles) This link opens in a new window Full-text access to the following reference titles published by Salem Press:      Adolescent Health and Wellness      Cancer      Psychology and Behavioral Health
ScienceDirect This link opens in a new window Access to over 2,400 full-text journals in the sciences and social sciences.
Scopus This link opens in a new window Scopus is a comprehensive database providing access to the research literature of the natural and physical sciences and the social sciences. The database currently provides over 50 million citation records and indexes over 20,000 peer-reviewed journals, over 390 trade publications, and over 370 book series. Also included are citations for over 5.5 million conference papers from proceedings and journals, over 25 million patent records from five patent offices, and articles in press from over 3,800 journals. [1823 - Present]

Evaluating Information

When searching in a database, critical thinking skills are essential. Don't waste time and paper! Spend a few minutes reviewing the citation and/or abstract information and consider the following details:

Author: who wrote this and what are his/her credentials and affiliations?

Source: is this a scholarly, professional, popular, or trade publication?

Publisher: who produced this? government? university? corporation?

Date: when was this published?

Audience: for whom is this written? general public? scholars? practitioners?

Purpose: are the findings clearly stated? Are there clear biases?

Data: is methodology explained? Are charts, graphs, illustrations clearly presented?

Conclusions: do the findings support the thesis?

References: are there footnotes and citations leading to related work?

Compare: how does this article compare with other articles in this field?