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Dialogues

Research steps

  1. Find Sources: Identify your information need and then find [search for] what you need
  2. Evaluate Sources: Learn to recognize when a source is the quality and content that you need
  3. Use Sources: Build your skills at using sources as evidence to support your arguments and skills in citing your sources

 

1. Finding Sources

What kind of source do I need: scholarly, peer-reviewed, magazine, news, website?

Carefully read the Canvas page for your course and the requirements of your assignment. 

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Scholarly (Academic) Articles

WHAT IS THIS?

Information sources created by and for academic researchers, including:

  • Scholarly journals (can include: studies, book reviews, letters to the editor, etc., however, typically instructors expect students to use only research articles)

  • Dissertations

  • Some government reports (ex. U.S. Geological Survey)

 

HOW TO FIND IT IN THE LIBRARY:

Most library databases have a "scholarly journals" or "academic journals" filter. See the Intro to the Library guide for more details about finding scholarly/academic sources. 

Note: Most business databases do not have this filter.

 

HOW DO I KNOW A SOURCE IS SCHOLARLY?

  • Look at the "source" of the article. Scholarly sources are published in academic journals.
  • You can google the name of the source [Is x journal scholarly?].
Peer-Reviewed Articles

WHAT IS THIS?

Scholarly works that have been published after systemic review and approval by academic researchers in the same field (i.e., reviewed by peers before publication).

 

 

HOW TO FIND IT IN THE LIBRARY:

Most library databases have a "peer-reviewed" check box or filter. See the Intro to the Library guide for more details about the peer-review filter. 

 

HOW DO I KNOW A SOURCE IS PEER-REVIEWED?

  • You can google the name of the source [Is x journal peer-reviewed?]
  • Use the peer-reviewed checkbox when searching in library databases to be sure it is peer-reviewed. 
 

 

 

Where can I search for the sources I need for my paper?

Start Here: Library databases to help you learn about your topic (or to find a topic!). This is Research FOR expertise.

Look at the page for your class (on the left) for more places to search.

Continue Here: Search these library databases (use keywords!) AFTER you have learned about your topic in the "Start Here" databases. This is Research FROM Expertise.

Note. Learn more about the keyword search skills you need for these databases. 

Continue Here: Search online only IF this is allowed in your course.  

1. Google Site Search: search by the type of website

  • Add site:.edu to any google search to limit results to university websites. Example: Are teenagers who play video games more violent? site:.edu
  • Add site:.gov to limit the results to government websites. Example: What is the Bill of Rights? site:.gov
  • Add site:website name to search a specific website. Example: immigration site:nytimes.com

2. Google Scholar Search: search scholarly works 

  • If you like an article and want to find more like it, click the "related articles" link to find more.
  • If you need to know if the article is peer-reviewed, copy and paste the title into the library search and look for the notice that it is peer-reviewed. Or google this: is "name of journal" peer-reviewed (remember, even if a journal uses peer-review, not all items in the journal are articles).

3. ProCon.org: view their topic lists

4. Elicit AI Search: search scholarly works

  • Ask Elicit a question, it will find academic journal articles and give summaries of their abstracts.
  • Note. Elicit searches a limited number of articles (from Semantic Scholar's publishing partners). 

2. Evaluating Sources

What can I do to check the quality of my sources?

Try one of these options:

  1. Ask a librarian! They can help you check your sources to see if they match the assignment criteria.
  2. Try the 5Ws test. Assess the article/information by asking yourself: who, what, when, where, and why?
  3. Try the SIFT Method. Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace info to the source.
  4. Try the SMART check. Who or what is the SOURCE? What is their MOTIVE? Who is the AUTHOR, and what are their credentials? REVIEW the information, does anything sound untrue? TWO-SOURCE TEST, how does the information compare to other sources?

 

How do I know if my source is relevant to my assignment?

You are the expert in your paper and topic so you are the best person to evaluate whether the information you find in a source is relevant to your assignment. But the library and your instructor are happy to help!

3. Using Sources

Where can I learn more about how to paraphrase and quote sources?

Paraphrasing: See this Grammarly guide to Paraphrasing for Better Research Papers. And this Purdue OWL guide - Paraphrase: Write it in your own words.

Quoting: See this Purdue OWL handout - Quoting Others.

 

Where can I find information about citing my sources?

The Lynn Library Citing Your Sources page has all the information you need to create APA in-text and reference list citations. 

You can also Ask A Librarian in chat or request a meeting!