Articles
Articles tend to be more specific in their focus than books.
These could include articles and reviews for general interest publications (newspapers, literary magazines, etc.); or academic articles directed at scholars. General interest articles can be a great way to get more facts as well as individuals' perspectives on your legislation, while academic articles will provide you with detailed, expert analysis. Just take care to be aware of the source and its purpose and biases. And, make sure to explore multiple perspectives -- even experts disagree!
While many of the research databases are full text (meaning you can download a copy immediately), some databases function more like bibliographies, providing you with information about an article but not the article itself. Check the Track Down Your Article Box for some tips and tricks for tracking down a copy of that perfect article (or two!). In some cases, you'll find what you need in a different database or even in print in the library -- in other cases, you might need to ask us to get a copy for you from another library.
.
What is a Research Database?
Databases are tools designed to help you search the scholarly (and other) articles and resources available to you through the Holy Cross Libraries. Article databases are like very long bibliographies of articles that might interest you -- some that are available physically at Holy Cross, some available online, and some that we have to borrow from other libraries.
Types of Databases
There are two main kinds of research databases that you might encounter:
- General databases, like Academic Search Premier and JSTOR, which have a little bit of everything;
- Databases for specific subjects or types of sources (ex - newspapers, historical sources, videos, etc.)
In addition, you will probably use CrossSearch, the search box on the homepage of the Libraries' website. CrossSearch is a discovery tool which searches many (though not all) databases at once. CrossSearch is like a library version of Google -- it is a great place to get your search started and find many sources at once. If you feel like Cross Search is overwhelming, try one of the suggested databases for theater and see what results you get.
Where Should I Look?
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window
Journal articles, books and dissertations focusing on literature and literary criticism, language, and publishing.
- JSTOR Arts & Sciences This link opens in a new window
Journal articles in almost every subject area, including some historical articles back to the 17th century.
- Literature Resource Center This link opens in a new window
Journal articles, literary magazines, essays, biographies, and other sources focused on authors and literary movements.
In addition to searching the research databases listed here, you may also want to try searching in specific subject specific journals by using the BrowZine Library.
- BrowZine LibraryCollege of the Holy Cross's online journal search platform. You can use this to find specific issues of journals, and with a little navigation you can also search within a particular journal for key terms.
Examples of journals:
Google Scholar is a great tool for doing a broad search of scholarly literature on your topic:
-
Google Scholar searches across many disciplines.
-
Your search results will include a broad range of sources, including journal articles, conference papers, theses, dissertations, academic books, pre-prints, and abstracts.
-
Results come from academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities and other web sites.
-
Google Scholar also includes court opinions and patents.
You'll just want to keep some things in mind:
-
Coverage is not comprehensive. Many sourcess are hidden in publishers' databases and journals that Google can't search, so you'll want to look at other databases as well.
-
Search results can include links to things like course syllabi and high school term papers, so you'll want to evaluate what you find.
You can access advanced search features by clicking the arrow in the right of the search box. These features allow you to refine your search.
Look for the words Get Full Txt @ Holy Cross next to an article. You should be able to access any of these articles through the library's subscriptions. If you come across a source that Holy Cross does not have access to, remember that you can request the item through Interlibrary Loan.
Scholar Settings When you are on the Holy Cross campus, Google Scholar will automatically show you those Get Full Txt @ Holy Cross links next to articles that Holy Cross has access to. If you are off-campus, you can set your Scholar Settings to show the links for accessing sources through Holy Cross. You can modify your settings by selecting the Settings link in the upper-right corner of Google Scholar webpage.
Click on the Cited by and Related articles links at the bottom of a search result to find more relevant articles and books.
Track Down Your Article
If you already have the citation information for an article, don't use the databases -- you can track it down directly through
CrossSearch or our E-Journals portal called Browzine.
Watch the tutorial below to learn how to take a citation and track down the full text of an article.