Articles appear in magazines, journals, periodicals, and newspapers. Use articles for:
most recent research on a topic
coverage of very narrow topics
coverage of current events
contemporary accounts of past events and research
Evaluating Articles
Evaluate articles by:
Purpose: Is the purpose to inform, entertain, persuade or educate?
Objectivity: Are various sides or points-of-view represented?
Author: Does the author have expertise on the topic?
Date: Is the information current or timely for your topic?
Bibliography: Are the sources of information cited completely and accurately?
Article Databases
Databases provide a systematic method of searching for articles, and other documents, on your topic. Some databases include full text of the documents they index but many do not. The top databases for psychology are:
Guest Access
Comprehensive index of scholarly journal articles, books and dissertations in psychology and related fields. 1800s-present.
Subject coverage includes basic and applied psychology, abnormal and clinical psychology, experimental psychology, human and animal development, social psychology, professional psychology and educational psychology. Also includes bibliographic citations and abstracts of periodical articles, reports and dissertations, books and chapters. 1987 to present for books and chapters; 1872 to present for journal articles and other material. VPN required if off-campus and also using RefWorks.
Searches 12,000+ scholarly journals in the sciences, social sciences and arts and humanities. Cited Reference Search locates articles that have cited an older document. Limited full-text access.
Includes the Arts & Humanities Citation Index (1975-present); the Science Citation Index and the Social Science Citation Index (1900-present for both); and the Emerging Sources Citation Index (2005-present).