Tutorials

Ebsco host publishing offers a variety of tutorials regarding basic search strategies and how to use some of their databases. Including Basic Searching for Academic Libraries, How to use CINAHL PLUS, and How to Use Consumer Health Complete. Click Here for a list of ebsco host publishing tutorials.

Gale publishing has a tutorial for Literature Resource Center (you must select either a powerpoint or zip file to download).

Alexander Street Press has a help page for Black Thought and Culture and a how-to slide show for Black Drama.

 

Terms & Defintions

Citations:  Be sure to provide accurate citations when quoting from someone else’s work. An easy way to do this is to copy the citation from an online source and paste it into your notes as you do the research so you don’t have to come back later and try to figure out where your information came from. Not only is this good scholarship, it is the ethical thing to do. Don’t let plagiarism ruin your scholarly career. There is a link on the LU Libraries webpage to online versions of the major Style Manuals so you can see examples of citations for the type of material you are quoting.

Subject Searching:  When trying to find information on a particular topic it can be very useful to search by “Subject.” Subject headings are provided by indexers using a controlled list of acceptable terms. The indexer reads or reviews the article or book and determines what it is “about.” Usually this will end up as a list of several main topics that are then assigned as Subject Headings. (In our electronic databases they may be listed in the right dropdown box as SU Subject.) While keyword searches look for a word or phrase anywhere in the database records, a subject search will look only in the field that contains Subject Headings. While finding a subject term can sometimes be more difficult, the results of a Subject search are usually much more focused. This saves you time in the long run as you do not have to look through as many items to find the information you need for your research.

Subject Sidebar:  When conducting a Subject Search in the LU Libraries Electronic Databases, in addition to retrieving a list of articles that are on your subject, there will also be a sidebar that will offer suggestions on other related subject terms that may help you refine your search.

Peer-Reviewed Journals :  When searching for journal articles on the LU Libraries website you will have an option to check a box for Peer-Reviewed Journals. “Peer-Reviewed” means that other professionals or researchers in the field review the article and may make suggestions before the article is published. This type of article is seen as having the greatest research value in higher education as the research methods are laid out for others to try to duplicate the results and a thorough literature review is expected to be a part of the writing process. Since these articles are usually long and detailed they will be of most use to upper division undergraduate and graduate students. These articles will also include an “Abstract” which gives a brief summary of the aims, methods, and conclusions of the research. This can be a great aid in deciding whether a particular article will meet your research needs  before you decide to copy or print it for your research project.

Date Limiters:  If you are conducting research in a field that is constantly being updated with new research then it can be very useful to retrieve only the most current information. The LU Libraries Electronic Databases have a section below the search boxes where one can limit the dates of publication to help with this type of research. For example, a Nursing student might want to conduct the search Cardiac Arrest in SU Subject Terms in the search box and go down to the Published Date from area and enter January 2003 to 2008 to retrieve the most current 5 years of articles on this subject.

Searching for Journals or Magazines in the LU Libraries Online Catalog:  You can use the Limits feature to find journals available in the LU Libraries on a particular topic. First it is recommended that you click on the Builder tab above the search box. Enter your search term(s) in the Search For box and in the Search In box use the drop-down arrow to click on Subject. Click on the box showing a pencil that is labeled Limits at the bottom right of the search area. In the new window use the area labeled Location: to scroll down to, and click on, Periodicals. Then click on the Set Limits button at the top of the Limits box. You are now ready to find what journal titles we have in our collections on this subject.