Quick Tips for Online Library Research: Start Your Research

1.   Develop your Research Topic:

• Discuss your Research Topic with your Instructor to get ideas.
• Use Opposing Viewpoints database to browse topics and get ideas.

2.   Select Keywords from your Research Topic:

• Use Keywords for searching for Books/eBooks and the Article Databases.
• How many Sources do you need and do they have to be Scholarly or Popular Sources?

3.   Search the Library's Resources -

Search for Books & eBooks: 

• Books & eBooks provide background research.
• Background research gives you an overview and helps you to understand the main topic points.
• Keep track of your sources and citations as you find them.

Search the Databases to find Articles: 

• Add Keywords to focus your search so that your topic is not too broad or too narrow.
• Getting too many results? Try narrowing your search by publication date range, so you get the most current results.
• Keep track of your sources and citations as you find them.

4.   Evaluate your Sources:

• Ask yourself, do the sources fit and support your Research Topic?
• Are they scholarly or popular sources that fit the assignment requirements?

5.   Create your Works Cited or Reference page:

• A Works Cited or Reference page list your sources and citations.
• It shows where you got the information to support your Research Topic and gives credit to that person or organization.
• It also shows that you did not plagiarize or copy someone else's work.

Need help? Ask a Librarian, we are always here to help you with your research assignments. 

Abstract: a short summary of an article in an academic journal, usually appearing at the beginning of the article.

Catalog: an online listing of all the materials a library owns with a detailed description of each item and information on where they are located.

Citation: basic information about a specific source; a citation for a book includes author, title, publisher, place of publication and year of publication.

Database: a collection of organized information; Academic Search Complete is an example of an electronic database.

Journal: a publication that contains scholarly articles written by professors, researchers, or experts in a specific area; also called scholarly journals, academic journals and peer reviewed journals.

Periodical: a publication that appears on a continual and predictable schedule; examples include newspapers, magazines and journals.

Reference books: books such as encyclopedias, dictionaries and handbooks; these books provide key sources of information.