HIS: History Research Guide: Finding Articles

1. To find articles on a specific topic, use one of the Research Databases available from Library Web pages. 
2. Begin with a general-interest or multidisciplinary database such as Academic Search Complete if you don't know where to start.
3. Consult the subject list of databases to identify the subject that best fits your topic.

Research databases are online tools you can use to search for articles.

They provide information about articles, books, book reviews, reports, and conference papers appearing in journals, magazines, and newspapers.  

Many provide full-text of the articles.  You can read, download, print, or e-mail articles directly from the computer. 

Recommended databases for this project include the ones listed on the "Finding Articles" tab. . 

Other databases include:

To find out whether full-text copies are available online, look for the HTML or PDF full-text links or use the Find It! link. 

The FindIt link also provides information about library print holdings and includes a link for requesting copies of articles not available online.

Click here to learn to how to use the Journal Finder to find full-text, online and print journal articles from an article citation. 

How do I use the Journal Finder? 

Check the Limit/ Sort options to limit your searches to scholarly, peer-reviewed journal articles. 

Look for: 

• Authors who are experts in their fields
• Use of endnotes, footnotes, or bibliographies
• Articles that report on scholarly research
• Charts and graphs
• Use of the vocabulary (jargon) of the discipline

Searching the Research Databases effectively may require new, specialized search skills.   

Need help?  Try one of these tutorials:  University Libraries -- Library Tutorials.

Topics covered in the tutorials include:

• Introduction to University Libraries
• KentLINK & OhioLINK
• Basic Search Strategies
• Evaluating Information on the Web

The OhioLINK  Electronic Journal Center provides access to 8200+  full text research journals covering a wide range of subjects. Download electronic articles instantly or read entire journal issues online, Create e-mail or RSS alerts for new issues, save searches, and set up automatic search alerts for new search results.

JSTOR (Journal Storage) is an archive of over 1000 academic journals. The most recently published issues (past 3-5 years) are generally not available.