Research methods in Psychology

1. Research methodsin Psychology Library resources, and the tools and techniques to access them. Finding resources. Accessing the full text of these resources. Evaluating the content.

2. Navigating the new library homepage. Mahoney Library The library website, redesigned to be more user friendly and better organized. To access the library page from the new college website, click on Academics and then Mahoney Library on the left side of the page. The top three databases for psychology will appear with a brief description of the resource. Click on the link See more sources for psychology to get to the Psychology subject guide. Click on the subject link to take you to a list of databases for that subject. Databases by subject : listing key databases for each academic discipline Research tools and other major catagoriesforlibrary resources Subject guides: Library resources organized by academic discipline. Online & Print Journals For locating full text of journal articles Subject guides: New central access point to resources for a particular academic discipline. Psychology link Link to Psychology subject guide Encyclopedias& other online reference sources Ask Us: live online chat session with a librarian . Direct access to Ebscoand other database providers. Coolcatour online library catalog How to: answers to frequently asked questions

3. Psychology subject guide Mahoney Library Click on the Subject Guides link on the library homepage. Click on the subject you are interested in. OnIine reference Bibliographic citation style guides Key databases Research guides Key books in the library collection

4. Mahoney Library Step one. Selecting a topic and beginning the research process. Some students select a topic that is either too narrow and specific, more appropriate for post graduate work and requiring original research, Or too broad, with too much information and areas to cover to make it a workable topic for research. Other students start by selecting a conclusion first instead of a topic, then work backwards, doing research to prove their point. Research is a creative and exploratory process. Allow yourself time for your research to develop. When searching, avoid using sentences in a basic search screen. Instead, use the Advanced screen and search for individual terms combined. Search on Subjects if possible, or if you are unsure of your term search on Abstract. Make sure the connecting is and, not or which generates too many results.

5. Books:Reference Collection Encyclopedias, dictionaries, almanacs etc. with overviews to begin research. Reference books must be used in the library and cannot be checked out. A. Selected reference works for the psychology. 1. Magill’s encyclopedia of social science : psychology4 v. 2003 (REF150.3 M273ssp) Overviews of various topics, providing key concepts and identifying major researchers in the field. 2. Handbook of Psychology12 v. 2003.(REF 150 H236) Extensive coverage with each volume dedicated to a specific area. Vol. 6, Developmental Psychology provides sections on Infancy, Childhood and Adolescence. B. Online Reference (Available from the Psychology Subject Guidepage ). 1. Facts on File: Health Reference CenterCoverage of mental health and developmental disorders from a wide range of health related encyclopedias. 2. Child Development Covers physical, cognitive, social and emotional development and behavior, from conception through adolescence C. Internet Resources 1. AllPsych Online(http://allpsych.com/ ) Site created by Dr. Chris Heffner to promote the advancement of psychology and mental health through education and research 2. Encyclopedia of Psychology(http://www.psychology.org/) Site hosted by Jacksonville University Psych. Dept. providing links to professional internet sources on psychology. Mahoney Library

6. Searching for resources: Coolcat Shared catalog for Mahoney Library and the FDU libraries. Coolcat The Library catalog has been redesigned for easier access You can select either basic search Or select Advanced Search for more options Select the kind of search to perform and select a date range to limit results. You can also select to search a particular location and collection. Mahoney Library

7. Coolcat: Reviewing results Mahoney Library Results screen for a basic search on the subject keywords Child and Psychology for results published from 2006 and after. 51 records retrieved, most from FDU. To limit results to CSE records click On add filter CSE. 2 records retrieved. Check the box to the left of the record(s) you are interested in and click on either Print, email or add to list. Click on the title of the work to open up the record. You may get a security warning regarding web content. Click No to view all content.

8. The Individual record. The individual record provides lots of useful information about the resource. Author , title, table of contents. Location of the item and call number. Subjects, allowing you to generate new searches using the subject terms supplied. Google books record, providing additional information. Reviews and more. Mahoney Library

9. Periodicals Periodicals: Also known as journals, magazines or serials, are written works published on a regular basis, usually as a series of volumes and issues. This distinguishes them from books which are published only once. • Peer reviewedjournals: Scholarly journals that have been reviewed by professionals • in the field before publication. • E-journals: Journals available in • electronic form through full text • databases. We have 24 print subscriptions to psychology journals at the library. We have access to over 600online psychology journals, far more than we could afford, or even shelve in the library. • E-journals have the same literary • content as their print counterparts.

10. Psychology databases Mahoney Library Psychology databases: 1. Psych Info: Database of the American Psychological Association, providing sophisticated searching tools and the broadest range of coverage in the field of psychology. This database does not contain full text but will link to other databases with full text. a. Psych Articles: Subset of Psych Info containing full text. 2. Science Direct: Largest collection of scholarly full text journal articles in the sciences, including psychology, but with somewhat less developed searching tools. 3. Social Science Index: full text database covering all of the social sciences, including psychology.

11. Mahoney Library Constructing a search Choose databases 1. Begin by selecting Ebsco a major database provider, and click on Choose Databases to select which databases to search. 2. Enter multiple search terms as subjects, abstracts etc. 3. Limit results to a scholarly journals, a specific date range or full text. 4. Click on Search. 5. Note the two different articles generated from your search. 6. Use subjects directly below the article record to refine your search. 7. Use major headings listed at the bottom of the page. 8. Use an asterisk (*) as a wild card, filling in for one or more letters. 9. Use quotations (“ “) when wanting to search a phrase, Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals: limits results to articles from peer reviewed publications. Limit results to full text Publication Date allowing you to limit results to a specific date range.

12. Mahoney Library Psych Info: Accessing your results. Limit the results to records with a link to the full text, or to scholarly journals . Search for full text locates full text available when not in the record. Limit results to a specific date range Click on Print, Email, Save, or Export the record. Links to full text when available Generate a new search using one of the suggested subject headings. Click on a subject to start a new search. Cite: Creates a citation for your bibliography in various styles Click on the title of an article to access the complete record. View Abstract provided.

13. Mahoney Library Retrieving resources:Getting articles from full text databases Many databases provide the actual text of the article being searched. You will be taken to a new screen listing the databases with the full text for the journal and the range coverage they offer Simply click on the PDF or HTML link to take you to the full text. The text of the electronic version will be identical to the print version. If the full text is not provided, the database can search the other databases for the full text. Click “Search for full text” or some version of that. Click on the database providing the coverage you need. Volume & issue Scroll down until you find the article you are looking for. Click on the volume and issue to access the issues.

14. Mahoney Library Finding the full text for a citation Online & Print Journals If you have a citation, and you want to find out which database has the full text, click on the Online & Print Journals link on the library home page. 1. In the new screen, type the journal’s title (not the title of the article) in the field provided. 2. A list of databases providing full text access will appear, along with any print holdings. 3. Follow procedures previously outlined to access the article.

15. Mahoney Library Retrieving full text of documents through inter-library loan If you can’t to locate a book or article through the library’s databases or print collection, you can always request the document throughInter-library Loan. Inter-library loan provides access to books and articles belonging to other libraries. Through reciprical borrowing, the Library provides access to almost any document a student may need In her research. Services & borrowing: Library page link to Inter-library loan. How to Borrow from Another Library Request forms • Click on the Services & Borrowinglink from the library home page. • Click on the How to Borrow from Another Library link below Borrow from other libraries. • Under InterLibrary Loan, click Book Request FormorJournal article request form. • Fill out the form and click on the submit button. The library will call or email you when your item arrives. You may also visit the nearest library possessing the document to get it yourself. To borrow a book fill out an ALA form at Mahoney Library (see a librarian for assistance)