OBJECTIVE. Today's objective will be to find articles and websites that support your topic in order by using the library's periodical databases in order to find more specific information that are currently being discussed. You will learn:

• how to distinguish between different types of periodicals
• develop search strategies for finding articles using the library's periodical databases
• how to evaluate websites to make sure they are appropriate for an academic research paper.

ARTICLES.
Articles are the next logical step in the research process. Articles provide the most specific information available; this is where you can “drill down” your topic by using flexible search tools and multiple keyword search terms.

There are different types of articles, which you can sort out in your results list. They include:

• Magazine articles tend to be several pages in length. Magazines include popular news magazines like Time and Newsweek, which are appropriate for research, and general interest magazines like Vogue and Spin, which are not.
• Newspapers. Newspaper articles provide brief but current information. For current events, newspapers are a good source; however, beware of older newspaper articles, which may reflect coverage that no longer reflects current policy or ideas.
• Academic or Scholarly Journals. Academic/scholarly articles are products of extensive research, and are published by academic journals whose staff is made up of their peers. Although scholarly articles can be difficult to read since they cite complex statistical research and may include jargon you are unfamiliar with, they provide the reader with unfiltered access to academic thought.
• Trade Journals. Trade journals are written for people in a specific industry (e.g., construction, accounting, etc.) and cater to information related to job or industry performance. It is unlikely that this would be of much value for a research paper.

PROQUEST RESEARCH LIBRARY and EBSCO ACADEMIC SEARCH COMPLETE are the library's two main periodical databases and are accessible through the library's periodicals database page. You can access millions of articles from thousands of periodicals in each of these databases. It’s best to use the “Advanced Search” feature and take advantage of the ability to search for two or three terms at once. This is the best way to narrow your search and find only the most relevant results. 

Before you do a database search,  identify the most important keywords that are relevant to my topic. It's important to also think of terms that are broader, narrower, or alternatives. For example:

• TOPIC: Exploring attitudes about perceptions of athiests in America
• KEYWORDS: attitudes; perceptions; athiests
• ALTERNATIVE KEYWORDS: public opinion; atheism; secularism
  
• BROADER KEYWORDS: religion; belief; doubt
  
• NARROWER KEYWORDS: Freethinkers
  

For visual guides on finding scholarly articles in these databases, visit the EBSCO page and the ProQuest page.

PERIODICALS IN PRINT (located on the tall shelves to the left of the computers in the library).                                        
The library subscribes to hundreds of periodicals in print. Many of them are not available full-text in the databases; you can find those articles by locating the appropriate issue.

THE INTERNET.
The Internet can be a productive resource for your research. The trick is finding the best information. Since anyone can post anything on the Internet, there is a lot of information that is misleading, incorrect, or outdated. Critical thinking is vital when determining the validity of a website. You can use some tools, like Google's Advanced Search screen, to find quality websites by results to .edu websites.

 Some questions to ask yourself when evaluating a website:

• Who is the author? If you can’t determine who is the author or the publisher, pass on it.
• Is it biased? Websites that deal with political or social issues are often one-sided and have a bias. The bias does not mean that it’s bad; however, it’s up to you to see if their point of view is effectively argued and has research to back it up. It’s also up to you to find the opposing view for balance.
• Is it accurate? Again, look at the claims that are being made and see if there is research to back up their claims. Be wary of websites that make claims that seem to contradict everything else that you found.
• When was it published? If you’re researching a current topic but the website hasn’t been updated in 10 years, or no date is given, pass on it.

Some online resources that can be helpful include Google Scholar and the Directory of Open Access Journals. These sites allow you to search for scholarly articles online. These are good places to go if you’re still in need of scholarly articles and exhausted the library’s periodical databases. Because many of the articles are not full-text, these may not be of much value to you, but they are worth a look.

There are also websites that organizeother  websites by subject; these subject collections connect you to quality websites. Many of these websites are good entryways to your topic on the Internet, but may be limited if only a few websites are recommended. Some of these include the Librarians’ Index to the Internet, Internet Public Library  and the Pierce College Library's Internet Links.