Finding Articles

You can search many article databases simultaneously in MetaSearch, or each database individually by clicking on the links below. Note: MetaSearch may not always be appropriate for graduate/faculty level research since it lacks the ability to fine-tune searches or set up alerts.

See this handout for tips on distinguishing between popular magazines, industry/trade publications, and peer-reviewed journals.

For tips on doing research, evaluating sources and citing your sources, click on this "How to" link.

Most of your journal articles will be found in one or more of our online databases. If you know the name of the database you want to search, you can get to it by going to the database A-Z list. The following databases are those that I've found especially useful for Social Work students:  

Academic Search Premier (EBSCO)
This multi-disciplinary database provides full text for nearly 4,500 journals, including full text for more than 3,600 peer-reviewed titles. PDF backfiles to 1975 or further are available for well over one hundred journals, and searchable cited references are provided for 1,000 titles. Academic Search Premier is updated on a daily basis.  

Academic OneFile (Gale)
Academic OneFile is the premier source for peer-reviewed, full-text articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources. With extensive coverage of the physical sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences, the arts, theology, literature and other subjects, Academic OneFile is both authoritative and comprehensive. With millions of articles available in both PDF and HTML full-text with no restrictions, researchers are able to find accurate information quickly.

ProQuest Central
Another large multidisciplinary database with over 11,000 titles, more than 8,000 in full-text. It serves as the central resource for researchers at all levels with over 160 subject areas covered extensively in including business and economics, health and medical, news and world affairs, technology, social sciences and more.

Project Muse
Project MUSE provides full text, subscription access to current content from scholarly journals in the humanities and social sciences.  Allows you to include JSTOR in your search.

Social Work Abstracts (EBSCO)
Social Work Abstracts Plus provides two unique databases in one subscription: Social Work Abstracts and The Register of Clinical Social Workers. Social Work Abstracts contains information on the fields of social work and human services from 1977 to present.

SocINDEX with Full Text (EBSCO)
SocINDEX with Full Text is a comprehensive sociology research database. SocINDEX with Full Text contains full text for over 700 journals dating back to 1908. This database also includes full text for more than 800 books and monographs, and full text for over 11,000 conference papers.

Encyclopedia of Social Work (via Oxford Reference Library)
Co-published by the National Association of Social Workers and Oxford University Press, the 20th edition of the Encyclopedia of Social Work is widely considered the cornerstone of reference in its field. This new edition includes coverage of areas that have come to the fore since the 1995 publication of the 19th edition, including demographic changes from immigration, technology, the implications of managed care, faith-based assistance, evidence-based practice, gerontology, and trauma and disaster.
Citation Note: The suggested citations given at the end of each entry are not in accordance with APA style. The correct format is as follows:
Quam, J.K. (2008). Jane Addams. In Encyclopedia of Social Work. Retrieved August 13, 2008, from Http://www.oxford-naswsocialwork.com/.

Social Services Abstracts (CSA)
CSA Social Services Abstracts provides bibliographic coverage of current research focused on social work, human services, and related areas, including social welfare, social policy, and community development. The database abstracts and indexes over 1,600 serials publications and includes abstracts of journal articles and dissertations, and citations to book reviews.

Sociological Abstracts (CSA)
CSA Sociological Abstracts abstracts and indexes the international literature in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. The database provides abstracts of journal articles and citations to book reviews drawn from over 1,700 serials publications, and also provides abstracts of books, book chapters, dissertations, and conference papers. Records added after 1974 contain in-depth and nonevaluative abstracts of journal articles.

JSTOR
JSTOR is a not-for-profit organization with a dual mission to create and maintain a trusted archive of important scholarly journals and to provide access to these journals as widely as possible. Content in JSTOR spans many disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Note: JSTOR has nothing published in the past 5-years.

Dissertations & Theses (ProQuest)
Full Text includes 2.4 million dissertation and theses citations from around the world from 1861 to the present day together with 1 million full text dissertations that are available for download in PDF format. The database offers full text for most of the dissertations added since 1997 and strong retrospective full text coverage for older graduate works.

EthOS -- British Theses online
Access over 250,000 theses from UK universities.  Most are available for free download.

ERIC (EBSCO)
ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) database is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education to provide extensive access to educational-related literature. The ERIC database corresponds to two printed journals: Resources in Education (RIE) and Current Index to Journals in Education (CIJE). Both journals provide access to some 14,000 documents and over 20,000 journal articles per year.  

PolicyArchive
A comprehensive digital library and archive of public policy research; an especially rich source of research not found in other sources on local issues.

PolicyFile
A unique database indexing research and publication abstracts addressing the complete range of US public policy research. Reports and white papers come from research institutes, associations, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. While these report are of high, academic quality, one should always consult the publisher's webpage to determine its possible agenda. Consult with your instructor to determine its acceptability.

Ethnic NewsWatch (ProQuest)
An interdisciplinary, bilingual (English and Spanish) and comprehensive full text database of newspapers, magazines and journals from ethnic, minority and native presses. This current database begins its coverage in 1990. Use the advanced search option to limit to academic journals.

GenderWatch (ProQuest)
GenderWatch™ provides authoritative historical and current perspectives on the evolution of gender roles. GenderWatch supports gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) studies; family studies; gender studies, and women's studies with a unique interdisciplinary approach. Combining more than 200 academic, gray, and popular literature titles, GenderWatch provides researchers with more than 100,000 articles on wide-ranging topics like sexuality, religion, societal roles, feminism, eating disorders, day care, and the workplace. Use the advanced search option to limit to academic journals.

AARP AgeLine (Ovid)
AgeLine provides bibliographic references and original abstracts for materials related to aging and middle age, from an interdisciplinary perspective of psychology, economics, sociology, gerontology, public policy, business, health and health care services, and consumer issues. Documents on health care and policy comprise about half the database. Document types include: journal articles, books, book chapters, reports, and government documents. Journal coverage includes research, professional and general interest titles.

Global Issues In Context
While more of an information portal than a conventional article database, Global Issues in Context offers international viewpoints on a broad spectrum of global issues, topics, and current events. Featured are hundreds of continuously updated issue and country portals that bring together a variety of specially selected, highly relevant sources for analysis of social, political, military, economic, environmental, health, and cultural issues. Heavy on international news source, but a good way to keep up with current issues and activities.

Directory of Open Access Journals: Social and Public Welfare
Good quality, but not necessarily peer-reviewed open access journals.

Directory of Open Access Journals: Sociology
Good quality, but not necessarily peer-reviewed open access journals.

For articles discussing the pros and cons of social issues, try the Opposing Viewpoints and/or CG Researcher databases.  These can be accessed via the "Databases A-Z" list http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/view/databases/abc/A

Finding Books & Media

You will find most of your books by searching IUCAT, the online catalog for all the Indiana University libraries.  For instructions on using IUCAT to find books, check out the How to... guide.

IUCAT is also the place to find a known journal title.  For example, if you are looking for the journal Social Work in Health Care, do a periodical title search in IUCAT.

And if we have the journal in online format, click on the URL for IUPUI, which will look like this: URL: [IUPUI]

Alternatively, you can search for online journals via the e-journal search page.

Reference Materials

Increasingly, University Library is emphasizing electronic reference works over paper.  Electronic reference is easier to search. accessible from home, and available 24/7.  Find here standard encyclopedic works and career guides.  Statistics has its own tab.

Statistics

There is just no easy way to find statistics.  Consult the library's online statistics page at http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/subjectareas/gov for a variety of possible resources.  Make a good-faith effort to find the statistics you need, because when you get out on the job, you'll need to know where to look for such information, but don't spend an excessive amount of time and frustration fighting the complexities of searching for that one figure you need for your project.  Contact the social work librarian or the reference desk, and we will try to find the data for you.