Check out the library's self-paced tutorial How do I search library databases? to learn the basics of database searches.
1. What is Mardigian Search and why should I use it?
- Mardigian Search is the library's Discovery search box, which looks through all of the library's databases at once.
- Mardigian Search is great for:
- finding out what's been studied in your research area
- finding sources about interdisciplinary topics
2. How do I search for peer-reviewed articles about my topic?
- Identify your search words:
- Identify the keywords of the geographical area or archeological period you're studying
- Each book and article has tags assigned to it, words or shorts phrases that make them searchable - you want your search words to match those tags
- Example: The question for your research project is: What factors determine whether or not children experience catch up growth?
- To search for this topic: catch up growth child*
- child* will search for child and children
- "catch up growth" will search for catch up growth as a phrase, not separate words
3. I'm looking for a specific article from a citation - how do I find out if the library has it?
- Enter the article title into the search box, removing all punctuation
4. How do I focus my search hits to peer-reviewed articles that are relevant to my discipline?
- Use the options in the Refine Your Search sidebar :
- Check Peer Reviewed
- Check Journal Article under Content Type
- Check, under Discipline, relevant subjects like Anthropology or Biology
- Under Subjects, to identify more specific subjects within your research area
5. How do I know my search words match the tags assigned to articles about my research question?
- As you scroll through the search hits, click on Quick Look and look at the Subjects (tags) assigned to the relevant articles you find
- See if they match your search words - if they don't change your search words accordingly
- Subjects (tags) also help you identify the specific populations or issues in your research area
6. How do I preview the abstract/summary of articles in the list of search hits?
- Click on Quick Look below the article title to look at the abstract of the article
7. How do I access the article so I can read the whole thing?
- Click on Full Text Online
- Look for pdf Full Text or HTML Full Text links
8. I can't find anything on my topic. What do I do?
- The search words you're using to describe your topic may not match the tags that have been assigned to books and articles on that topic
- Look through the Subject terms in the Refine Your Search sidebar and check the boxes beside the topic areas that interest you
- When you find an article that looks interesting, look at its assigned tags/subjects
- Add any relevant tags to your search
- This will also help you develop your research questions and search for articles about your specific research questions
- There may not be research tying your main ideas together yet
- Try searching for your main ideas separately and linking their findings together
- If you've found one article that's relevant for your topic, look through the sources in its References list to see if any of them are also relevant to your research
- Ask the Anthropology librarian, Nadine Anderson, or your course professor for help
