If you only have a citation of an article, try one of the options below to locate the full-text of the article.
1. Click the "Find It!" link, near a citation in an online database, if you're in the middle of
searching the databases.
Example: Getting the Full Text in EBSCO Databases
Example:
Journal Title: Food Microbiology 21 (2004), pp. 535–541
Article Title: Bacteriological quality and safety of raw milk in Malaysia
(Note: you would also need to input at least one more information on the article such as author(s), Journal/publication title, ISSN, etc.)
Example:
Article title: Bacteriological quality and safety of raw milk in Malaysia
Author(s): Fook Yee Chye, Aminah Abdullah, Mohd Khan Ayob
DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2003.11.007
Example:
Article title: Bacteriological quality and safety of raw milk in Malaysia
If any of the options above don't work, then request articles via Interlibrary Loan (ILL) and Document Delivery Services for the HPU Libraries (Use the Journal Article Online Request Form)
1. Identify and develop your topic:
--Find a topic that interests you
--State your topic as a question
(e.g. "What effect does the plastic debris have on the marine ecology?" )
--Identify the main concepts and keywords
"What effect does the plastic debris have on the marine ecology?"
2. Locate a background information on your topic using
Specialized/Subject-specific Encyclopedias and Online Encyclopedias
--Provide more extensive coverage of a topic than a General Encyclopedia.
--Help you to get a better understanding of your topic and clarify your ideas
--Supply the keywords that are commonly used in a discipline
--Provide related articles in Bibliography (References)
3. Create a list including;
--Search terms: relevant terms, synonyms, brooder & narrower terms, or
descriptive phrases that describe your topic
--Call numbers you discovered for relevant books
--Subject Headings: browse LCSH online to look up broader terms, narrower
terms, variants, and related terms.
(Enter keyword or phrase, select "LC Subject Headings," and then click "Search")
--Names of experts and organizations
--Titles of scholarly journals related to your topic
4. Select Resources considering;
--What are you going to research?
--What are your information requirements?
(Consider the type, quantity, and format)
--What kind of assignment do you have to complete?
--How much information do you need?
--What types of publications do you want to read?
(books, newspaper, journal, or consumer magazine articles, government
documents, & primary sources)
--What format do you need? (audio-Visual, print, electronic)
5. Search library’s HPU Discovery to locate:
--Articles
--Books & Ebooks
-- Reference Books
-- VHS, DVD, & Streaming Videos
6. Browse your libraries’ shelves for the call number discovered in step 5.
7. Search library’s A-Z Databases to locate:
--E-Books
--Online Encyclopedias (Reference & Statistics)
--Journal & Magazine (Consumer or Trade) Articles
--Newspaper Articles
--HPU Graduate Professional Papers
(On Campus Access Only)
8. Search Tips
--Do a trial search, using a few of the specific key terms for your topic.
--Review the first few articles and focus on the subject terms used.
--Revise your search using;
*Boolean Operators [ AND, OR, NOT ] to combine
more than two search terms.
*Quotation marks [ " " ] for searching phrases.
* Wild card characters [ ? & * ]
--Refine or narrow your search using limiters such as date range, article
type, full-text availability, etc.
--Revise search again for more focus, if necessary
9. Evaluate what you found: skim everything you locate to determine which resources may be the most useful.
10.Revise/refine your search as necessary: repeat steps 5 through 9 as necessary.
Source:
George, M. W., (2008). Strategy and Tools for Discovery. The Elements of Library Research (pp. 67-69). New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Here is a quick summary of the search process.
1. Once your topic is decided, select the appropriate databases for your subject.
2. Do a trial search, using a few of the specific key terms for your topic.
3. Review the full record of the first ten or more articles.
4. Focus only on the subject terms in the results:
-Did you select a keyword that is their subject heading?
-Is there an alternate subject term to use?
-Are there some terms that will help you narrow your retrieval?
5. Revise your search using the subject terms found.
6. Narrow further, if necessary, by adding more terms or other limiters available.
7. Check if you need to adjust the time coverage for your topic.
Reminder: the titles of articles do not always indicate the content of the articles (their subject focus), but if you have done a subject search then you know the articles will cover your topic.
