HNFE 2014: ORIENTATION TOLIBRARY RESEARCH METHODS & MATERIALS Rebecca Miller

millerrk@vt.edu OR hnfelibrarian@vt.edu

540-231-9669

“LIBRARY RESEARCH”

Involves identifying and locating sources that provide factual information or personal/expert opinion on a research question

A necessary component of all research projects/questions/methods at some point

What IS the library, and why is it still relevant?

NEWMAN LIBRARY

Physically, Newman Library houses most of the research materials at VT Other branches include Vet Med and Art +

Architecture Aside from books, journals, and reference

help, you will find: Comm Lab Copy Center Language Resource Lab Night OWL Coming soon: coffee shop!

NEWMAN LIBRARY SERVICES

Circulation Check out books, DVDs, journals, and more! Use your Hokie Passport to do this “Reserve” books are also found here

Reference & research help Librarians. We’re here to help. Visit the 2nd (Business, Humanities, and Social

Sciences or 4th (Science & Technology) floor desks

Interlibrary Loan Order a book that the library does not own…it’s

FREE to you!

ABOUT YOUR PID

Your personal identification number that lets the library system know you are a member of the VT community

Must have it to: Sign up for an Interlibrary Loan account Access databases from off campus Access electronic journals from off campus Access electronic books from off campus Renew your books online Check your record online Reserve a book if someone else has it checked

out

STARTING RESEARCH

Start at the University Library’s website; it is a portal to all databases, books, journal articles, and other resources

http://www.lib.vt.edu Next, you may want to visit the HNFE Subject

Guide for ideas on where to begin research

LOCATING A BOOK

When on a college campus, using the university’s library catalog is the BEST and FASTEST method for doing this

Here at VT, we have Addison, available at: http://addison.vt.edu

THE BOOK’S RECORD

Title Author Subject headings (terms) URL (if it is electronic) Location

Which library is it at? Call number Which floor is the item on?

ADDISON DEMONSTRATION

www.lib.vt.edu

Using keyword search Using subject headings Locating books Understanding call numbers Requesting books from off campus, through

interlibrary loan, or if someone already has it checked out

PERIODICAL LITERATURE

While books represent the best way to gain a background understanding of your chosen topic, periodical literature will let you gain an understanding of the current conversation revolving around your topic.

What is a periodical? And how do you search for related periodical articles? Think magazines, newspapers, journals…

DATABASES

Definition: Generally, a large, computer-based file of organized information. In library terms, such a file, devoted to a specific subject and organized for information search and retrieval. For example, the Web of Science is a bibliographic database of sources, such as journal articles, for the study of science related material. May also be called an “index.”

DATABASES…

Most likely, you will be using a database to look for a periodical article much like you would use the online catalog to look for a book

The information is organized in the same way Addison, the catalog, will NEVER have article

titles, only periodical titles Databases will let you search for individual

articles, which the catalog will not let you do

How do you decide which databases to use?

SELECTING A DATABASE

Currently, at VT, we subscribe to 700+ databases

Select a database from our “Articles and Databases” list on the home page

OR Use a related Subject Guide as your starting

point, and view recommended databases

A WORD ON PEER REVIEW

What is peer review? Also known as “scholarly” or “refereed” (as opposed

to “popular”) An editorial process in which experts from a

particular discipline scrutinize articles before they are published by a journal

Why is it helpful to us, as researchers? We can trust that the information presented in a

peer-reviewed article or journal is authoritative You WANT to use peer-reviewed journals in your

research

So, how can you tell if an article is from a peer-reviewed journal?

DETERMINING PEER REVIEW

A publisher’s website Ulrich’s Periodical Directory Using “limiting” options in a database that

allows you to search specifically for peer-reviewed articles

Understanding the principles behind scholarly work, and recognizing them…

RESOURCE EVALUATION, IN GENERAL

Consider: Currency—when was the book/article/website

published? Audience—who is this information intended for?

Why? Authority—who is the author? What are his/her

credentials? Publisher/sponsoring body—is this an academic

press? A hate group? Do they have a bias/agenda? Organization—is the book/article organized well? Is

the grammar correct? Are there footnotes, endnotes, and a bibliography?

Coverage—is the topic treated with depth? Does the book/article contribute to the existing body of knowledge?

FINDING FULL TEXT

Often, databases will offer the “full text” of an article—the complete article

Sometimes, it will not: you may need to be able to track down the article from its citation or through options in the database

Look for the Get Vtext icon in the database you are searching (make sure you are logged in through Off Campus Sign In)

Or, use the citation to track down the article through Addison (or Interlibrary Loan)

A WORD ON CITATIONS

There are many different styles of citations, but they all have the same components

When conducting research, it will be necessary to understand citations: You will need to create citations when you

attribute your sources in papers/projects you create

You will need to understand how to find the original resource from the citations given in databases or other bibliographies

ANATOMY OF A CITATION

Note: this particular citation is using the JADA style; although it looks different from other styles, the pieces of information are the same!

DATABASE DEMONSTRATION

PubMed Visit through the library website Make sure you’re logged in to Off Campus Sign In

to view the Get VText icon The most comprehensive medical database Some full text articles, some bibliographic

articles

Web of Science Visit through the library website If off campus, must log in to view this database Completely bibliographic database

QUESTIONS!

Before class, I gave ten of you index cards.

In any order, please raise your hand and ask your question, if you have a card.

Other questions? I’m still glad to answer them!

Thank you! Contact me if you have any lingering questions:

Rebecca Millerhnfelibrarian@vt.edu5004 Newman Library

540-231-9669

Atrium, Wallace HallTuesdays, 2:00-3:30 p.m.

Wednesdays, 9:00-10:30 a.m.

http://hnfelibrarian.blogspot.com