What Does A Periodical Database Offer?

Citations - Although the database may not contain the full-text of the article, the citation includes all the pieces of information you will need to find the article. Citations of articles often include the author, title, magazine or journal name, page numbers and publication information.

• • Citations, in the research world, have nothing to do with traffic tickets. Instead, citations describe published information, like articles or books or Web sites, in order to locate that source again. Citations of articles often include the author, title, magazine or journal name, page numbers and date of publication. Citations of Web documents also include a URL and the day the information was accessed.
  • The list of the sources you used when researching your paper may be called Bibliography, Works Cited or References depending on the citation style. These sources are listed in citation format and follow an established style, such as MLA (Modern Language Association), APA (American Psychological Association) or Chicago Manual of Style. The bibliography allows others who read your work to verify facts or research the same information more easily.

Full Text - In many cases the database record will include the complete text of the article and even graphics or illustrations. If not, you can search the periodical title in the COA Library catalog to see if the library carries that periodical in print and then go to the library to view the print version of the article.

• • All electronic databases provide records describing books or articles. Many databases also include the actual content or full text of the books or articles in their collection.

    Databases like the Opposing Viewpoints or Literature Resource Center provide you with the complete text for all their articles, reports and reviews. Other databases offer a mixture of citations, abstracts and full text. Following the citations for each article the database tells you how much information it can provide.

Peer Review - A database may offer the option to limit the record search to sources with Peer Review. Peer Reviewed, scholarly articles represent the most reliable, academically rigorous research.

• • The Peer Review process includes an article evaluation by experts in that field of research. The article is critically examined for accuracy; reviewers may suggest edits prior to publication of the article.

  • An article may be scholarly in nature (intended for an academic audience) but not be Peer Reviewed.

Abstracts - Besides the citation, a database record may also include an abstract or summary of the article's content. Reading the abstract, you learn more precisely what an article discusses. Abstracts can save you time by helping you identify the best articles on your topic.

• • The abstract of an article is a brief summary of its contents. Reading the abstracts can save you time by helping you identify the best articles on your topic.

         

An example of a peer reviewed source record which includes an abstract (Record taken from the EBSCO Academic Search Complete database):

 

Citations -