Module 2: Databases

Peirce College Information Literacy Tutorial

Database:an organized collection of information, often about a particular subject.

Think of databases as huge electronic filing systems. They must be highly organized for people to easily find the information they need.

There are many kinds of databases. The most common type you will encounter in the library is an online periodical index, which points you to articles published in magazines, journals, and newspapers.

Each year millions of articles are published in periodicals, some of which are indexed in periodical indexes. Your library will probably own many -- but may not own all -- of the periodicals included in those indexes (this is so important to remember!).

When you search a periodical index you will always get a citation, which includes the article author, article title, magazine or journal title, and date. Sometimes you will also find abstracts or the full text of articles.

Citations, in the research world, have nothing to do with traffic tickets. Instead, citations identify published information - print or electronic - in order to locate that item again. Citations of articles often include the author, title, magazine or journal name, page numbers and publication information. Citations of Web documents also include a URL and the date the information was accessed.

The list of the sources you used when researching your paper is called a List of Works Cited or Bibliography (it depends on the style you use). This list allows others who read your work to verify facts or research the same information more easily. These citations follow an established style, such as MLA (Modern Language Association), APA (American Psychological Association) or Chicago Manual of Style .

You can use the word "abstract" to identify a type of art or to describe something that is difficult to explain. But when we talk about the abstract of an article, we mean a brief summary.

Periodical indexes usually include abstracts that are written by the author or by someone at the database company. Since you don't know who wrote them or how accurate they are, you shouldn't quote from abstracts in your papers. Use them wisely and your research will be easier.

Ever wonder why you can't just get magazine and journal articles off the computer? Well, sometimes you can!

The complete electronic text of an article is called the full text . Some databases, like EbscoHost and Academic Universe, provide entire articles online (though usually not the images).

What if there are pictures or graphs with the article you want to see?