Guides: Searching for Scholarly Articles: Selecting Databases

Where to go?

Why Should you Search in a database?

A good place to start looking for a database is through the UCQ LC page.

Some suggestions:

Look at your field of interest -

Is it nursing? Look for a nursing database like CINHAL or MEDLINE.

Is it medical? Then look for a medical database like MEDLINE or Embase.

Is it about education, curriculum or university students? Look for educational databases like ERIC or Academic Search Complete

Read the information of each database through its description.
Is there only one database? or could there be another. For instance, if you are looking for psychological impact, look for that type of database.

If you are not familiar with the numerous options available to you, come to the Learning Commons Desk or contact your Librarian to learn more.

Why look beyond CINAHL?

Databases are made up of journals. Journals are made up of articles. You want articles, right?

There are thousands of journal titles available through a database. But there is not one database that contains all the hundreds of thousands of journal titles in the world. Journal titles can appear in different databases and that is where repetition can appear.

Do not settle with one database to answer all your questions.

If you have questions on the type of database you should be searching, drop in the Learning Commons or contact your Librarian.

ERIC
An education database containing articles, books, theses, curricula, conference papers, and standards and guidelines across educational topics.
PsycINFO
This database covers the professional and academic literature in psychology and related disciplines from 1803 to present. PsycINFO's coverage is worldwide, and includes references and abstracts to journal articles in more than 20 languages, and to book chapters and books in the English language.
Nursing Reference Center Plus
An evidence-based information resource designed specifically for nurses. With Nursing Reference Center Plus, obtain the Nursing Reference Center content and more like videos, images and new topics covering nursing management and leadership.
Joanna Briggs EBP Database
This database provides quality evidence-based practice information covering a wide range of medical, nursing, and health science specialties. It includes a unique suite of information that's been analyzed, appraised, and prepared by expert reviewers at JBI. Includes: Evidence Summaries, Evidence Based Recommended Practices, Best Practice Information Sheets, Systematic Reviews, Consumer Information Sheets, Systematic Review Protocols and Technical Reports.