Searching within Article Databases

Some databases look different from others, but they often share common features and functionality.

Please watch the following video OR read the text below the video.

Beginning Your Search

For the best results when searching an article database:

• • Combine concepts with “AND” in the search bar.
  • Use the database search limits. Most article databases have advanced search features that help specify your search results. You can often limit by:
    • Source Type
    • Publication
    • Subject
    • Language
    • And more…

Selecting an Article

Selecting an article title in a search results list will bring up the article record. The record provides useful article information and tools such as:

• • Subject terms, which are wording suggestions the database provides to help us revise our search and find the most useful articles for our topic. The database "tags" these articles with these unique terms.
  • Abstracts, which summarize the article and may contain other search terms to try in additional searches.
  • Citation tools, which produce formatted citations in multiple styles. Double check for accuracy before turning in your assignment.
  • Permalink, which is the only link to the page you're viewing.  Do not copy/paste the web address at the top of the page. 

You can find the options above once you have clicked on the title of an article, but they might look different depending on the database you're searching.

Reading an Article

To read an article, look for a link or button that says “Full Text,” “HTML Full Text,” “PDF Full Text” or something similar. These links will take you directly to the article.

If there is no a link to the article, look for a red “Find It” button. Selecting this button searches all of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries databases for article availability elsewhere.

• • If the article is available online, you will see the link to the article .
  • OR you can “Request a Copy” of the article through Interlibrary Loan.