Database Searching:
How to Find Journal Articles?
Edit by: Dr. Mostafa Hassnin
Library and Information Technology
Mass Communication and Information Science Dept.
Ft_mostafa@qu.edu.qa
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I. Understanding Online Databases
 What are online databases?
Online databases are Web-based electronic
indexes that enable you to locate and
retrieve articles in magazines, journals and
newspapers.
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Types of Databases —
 Multidisciplinary (Comprehensive) vs. Subject Specific
Database coverage may be comprehensive
e.g., Academic Search Premier , or on a particular
subject, e.g., ABI/Inform Global.
 Full text vs. Citation only
A database may contain full text articles or
only citations.
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II. Finding the Right Database(s) for
Your Research Topic
 What databases are available from the Library?
 Which databases are comprehensive and may be the best place
to start searching?
http://www.qu.edu.qa/home/libraries/ejournals.htm
Which specialized database is appropriate for my subject-oriented
research?
http://www.qu.edu.qa/home/libraries/edatabase.htm
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What databases are available from the Library?
 The library subscribes to a number of online databases which cover
various subjects. Remote access allows you to search off campus.
 Click By Title or By Subject or By Provider on the Library Homepage to
get a database list with descriptions and access information.
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Which databases are comprehensive?
Academic Search Premier
,
Wilson Omni File
&
InfoTrac OneFile*
Why should you start with one of the above ?
 They cover nearly all subject areas or disciplines.
 They provide a large number of full-text journal
articles.
 They let you limit your search to scholarly journals.
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InfoTrac OneFile Full-Text Content Areas
News and Community
1%
Education
4%
Law
7%
Arts, Entertainment,
Literature
8%
Business
34%
Health, Fitness, Medicine,
Psychology
10%
S cience, Engineering,
Computers, Technology
11%
S ocial S ciences
13%
General Interest
12%
Number of
Periodicals
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
2137
3529
54
670
1868
334
2552
5162
4601
3742
8040
premier
9308
OmniFile InfoTrac
OneFile
Databases
Embragoe
Peer Reviewed
Full Text
Indexed
Which specialized database is appropriate for
my subject-oriented research?
 You may select a specialized database
from the list By Subject.
 When you browse the list and select an
online database, consider the following
questions:




Which database covers my research subject?
Can I get full text articles?
Can I limit the search to scholarly journal articles?
What other sources are available ?
 For example:
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You are doing research on an Business topic:
Electronic Database
Database
Subject
Web Address
ABI/Inform
Global
Business/Economics
proquest.umi.com/login
ABI/Inform
Global
Business/Economics
proquest.umi.com/login
Helecon Scima
Economics
helecon.hkkk.fi/?&lang
=eng
Engineering
Village2
(Compendex &
Inspec)
Engineering
www.engineeringvilla
ge2.org
IEEEXPLORE
Engineering
ioj.iee.org.uk
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Business Periodical Full Text
 ABI/INFORM Global



Offer the most current peer reviewed
titles
More image content offering complete
access to important charts, graphs,
tables.
Deep Backfile to 86 with median title
starting in 93.
 Gale Business Resource Ctr


ABI includes over 300 active full titles
not available from Gale
As with the unique indexing offered by
Gale, much of its unique full text is
news, trade and industry content.
 Ebsco Business Source
Premier



ABI offers full text for nearly 300 titles
not available from Ebsco.
As with the unique indexing offered by
Ebsco, much of its unique full text is
news, trade and industry content.
Shallow file starting in 90 with median
title starting in 95.
All Full Text Periodicals
1200
Gale Title
Lists do
not
identify
Embargo
or peer
reviewed
Titles
1000
800
600
48
389
400
200
590
1176
279
35
269
236
0
ABI Global
Peer Reviewed
Other Embargo
Gale Bus.
Resource
Center
Ebsco Bus.
Source
Premier
Embargo Peer
Other
Based on Title List as of January 2001
III. Locating & Retrieving Relevant Articles
 Each database has its own search interface and
capabilities. Many of the basic search concepts
and features are similar:



Keyword searching
Limiters
Boolean operators
 What are some common searching problems
and solutions?
 Where can you find more assistance for some
of the library’s databases?
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Keyword Searching
 Keyword searching is the easiest search method, but may be
less precise.
 Databases collect, sort and present information according to FIELDS
(which are usually found in a dropdown menu), such as:




Author
Title of article
Subject
Publication name
 To make your search more specific, you may select one or more
fields to do keyword search.
 To expand your search, you may search for keyword(s) in All
basic or Default fields.
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Limiters
 Limiters are database functions that let you narrow
your search results.
 Database limiters may include:




Scholarly (Peer Reviewed)
Publication year
Full text
Language, etc.
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Boolean Operator: AND
 AND links words or phrases that must both appear in the same
article.
 If you what to focus your search results, use Boolean operator AND
to connect additional word(s)
Example: computer and teaching -- finds both computer
and teaching anywhere in the same article.
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Boolean Operator: OR
 OR
links synonyms, alternative forms of expression,
acronyms, and so on.

If you want to expand your search, use Boolean operator
OR to connect additional word(s).
Example:
first grade or elementary school -- finds either first grade
or elementary school in the same article.
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Proximity Searches
You can use a proximity search to search for two or more words that
occur within a specified number of words (or fewer) of each other in the
databases. Proximity searching is used with a keyword or Boolean
search.
The proximity operators are composed of a letter (N or W) and a number
(to specify the number of words). The proximity operator is placed
between the words that are to be searched, as follows:

Near Operator (N) - N5 finds the words if they are within five words
of one another regardless of the order in which they appear.
For example, type tax N5 reform to find results that would match tax
reform as well as reform of income tax.

Within Operator (W) - In the following example, W8 finds the
words if they are within eight words of one another and in the order in
which you entered them.
For example, type tax W8 reform to find results that would match tax
reform but would not match reform of income tax.
Common Searching Problems
& Solutions (I)
1.
Citation list is too long



Narrow your search using additional terms
connected by AND;
Limit your search by limiter functions;
Try to find the official descriptor or subject
heading that matches your keyword(s) in the
thesaurus or subject index provided by the
database.
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Common Searching Problems & Solutions (II)
2. No citations






Check the spelling of your search terms;
Eliminate one or more of your search terms;
Don’t fill in every empty text box or drop-down menu choice;
Try to find the official descriptor or subject heading that
matches your topic;
Make sure appropriate database is used;
Call (???) to ask a reference librarian for assistance.
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InfoTrac OneFile vs. the Competition
INFOTRAC ONEFILE
COMPARIS
ON
PLATFORM/ InfoTrac
INTERFACE
SEARCH
CAPABILI
TIES
Search Modes:
Subject Guide
Relevance
Key word
Advanced
Limits: Date (mmddyyyy)
Full-text
Publication
Refereed (peer- reviewed)
Phrase search - yes
Field search - yes
Search by publication title - yes
Chronological results - yes
Date specific searches - yes
Boolean search - yes
Full-text limit - yes
Truncation - yes
EBSCO ACADEMIC SEARCH
PREMIER
 EBSCOHOST
 A single user interface for all products
Search Modes:
Subject
Natural language
Keyword
Advanced
Expert
Limits: Date
Full-text
Publication
Peer-reviewed
Search techniques
 Click
for the instruction on searching
Academic Search Premier of EBSCOHost.
 Click
for the instruction on InfoTrac
OneFile.
 Click
for the instruction on ABI/Inform
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• ebrary database
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/qataru
have more than 60,000 online, full-text
books.
• NetLibrary Database
http://www.netlibrary.com/
More than 100,000 titles and hundreds of global
publishers
http://www.netlibrary.com/Search/AdvancedSearc
h.asp
All sources of information that you use in
your research must be cited, including
information found on the Web.
Your may require that you use a specific style
guide to cite sources in your research papers,
footnotes, and bibliographies.
Style Manuals
Below are links to sample citations using
standard basic style guides
• APA Style (American Psychological Association)
• Chicago Style (University of Chicago Press)
• IEEE Standards Style (Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers)
• IEEE Standards Style (Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers)
• MLA (Modern Language Association)
• Format : Author. "Article title." Journal Title Volume (Date):
Pages. Database. Vendor. Date of access. <URL for database.>
• Example: Lehrer, Eli. "Cities Combat Violent Crime." Insight on
the News 15 (July 19, 1999): 14. Expanded Academic Index
ASAP. Gale Group. October, 5,
1999. http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/iastu_main
• Format: "Title of article." Title of Source. Version or
Edition. Date of Update. Publisher. Date of Access. URL.
• Example: "Civil Rights Movement." Encyclopædia Britannica
Online. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. October 5,1999
http://search.eb.com/bol/topic?eu=84948&sctn=1
• Format: Title. Author. Date. Name of database. Date of
Access. URL.
• Example: Annual Report on School Safety, 1998. U.S.
Department of Education. October 1998. Congressional
Information Service, Inc. American Statistics Index. October
6,1999. http://web.lexis-nexis.com/statuniv/
• Format: Page Title. Author. Date of Last
Update. Sponsor. Date of Access. URL.
• Example: Institute for Information Literacy. Mary Jane
Petrowski. August 3, 2000. Association of College & Research
Libraries (ACRL). October 15,
2000. http://www.ala.org/acrl/nili/nilihp.html
1. There are interactive web tools which helps teachers
and students produce reference citations. Includes
MLA and APA formats.
http://pinetlibrary.com/citationmachine.net/index.php
?mode=form&g=6&list=nonprint&cm=13
http://www.easybib.com/