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WSTC02 Feminist Qualitative Research in Action

A guide to assist UTSC students in WSTC02 to find and use library resources needed to successfully complete their assignments.

Suggested Article Databases

Searching for Journal Articles

Searching in article databases

Search for articles in databases, because they search across a number of journals at once

Search Tips:

Search for keywords that describe your topic. You can combine them using AND, OR, NOT:

AND - narrows your search and makes it more specific by finding results with all of your keywords. Example search: apples AND oranges. Items that contain BOTH terms will be found.

OR - can be used to combine synonyms or different terms for the same concept. Example search: oranges OR tangerines OR clementines. Items that contain all of the words will be found.

NOT - used to narrow a search by exclusion. The NOT operator should be used with caution. Example search: apples NOT oranges. Items that contain the word "apples" will be found, but items that contain the word "oranges" will not be found.

* - The * (asterisk) is used to search for alternate endings of words, which will expand your search and look for more options. Example search: Canad*. This search will give you results for Canada, Canadian, Canadians, Canadiana, etc.

" " - The " " (quotation marks) are used to search for an exact phrase. Example search: "indentured servant". The results will contain that phrase, but not items with both words appearing separately.

Adapted from Cal Poly Pomona library

Choosing a Database

To find more databases for your subject:

  1. From the library homepage, click on Databases under the Library Search box.
  2. Click on Databases by subject A-Z.
  3. Scroll through the alphabetical list to find your subject area, e.g. Women and Gender Studies.
  4. Select your subject area and choose from a list of databases (you can and should try searching in more than one).

Depending on what question you are researching, you may need to look under various subjects. For example, Sexual Diversity Studies, or Sociology, or many others that might also be useful.

You could also click on Popular Databases to choose from that list.

 

Image of Library Search with link to Databses highlighted.

 

Image of Databases page with arrows pointing to popular databases and databases by subject a-z.

Select the subject area that you need from the alphabetical list:

Image of database by subjects a-z page with arrows pointing to choose a subject drop-down menu option.

Finding an Article by Title

To find an article by its title, type the title in double quotes into the search box on the Library website. This will search for the title as a phrase.You can also go straight to LibrarySearch and type the article title in double quotation marks. Make sure to select ARTICLES and click on the magnifying glass icon to search.

See also:  Find articles & books by DOI

screen capture of a search for the article 'Tracing the spiral structure of the milky way'

The individual article record contains many features and functions as shown below.  Click on the ellipsis (the three dots ... to the upper right) to bring them up.

  • Email
  • Permalink
  • Create a citation
  • Print
  • Export to a citation manager such as Zotero or Refworks
  • You can also pin the record to save it as one of your favourites.

screen capture of an article record, showing functions like get link, cite, send to a citation manager, etc.

Other helpful features in the article record:

  • Click on the PDF icon to download the full-text article right from within the record!  
  • If the source is licensed, you will need to login with your UTORid to view it.
  • In this example, the source is identified as an Open Access, so it is freely available to anyone – no login required.
  • If something is not working, you can report it as a problem

For more information on using all the many features and functions of LibrarySearch, have a look at this guide on using the new system.

See other FAQs about: 
Articles
LibrarySearch

Google Scholar

image of google scholar

Searching in Google Scholar:

  • Search in Google Scholar using keywords and search tips you use with other databases ( ' ', AND, OR, etc.).
  • Click on "Cited by" to find other articles or books that have cited the search results you are using.
  • Click on "Related articles" to find other articles that are related to the search results you are using.
  • To find specific articles, search for the article title in quotation marks; e.g. "Slave rebellion and the conundrum of cosmopolitanism"

Using Google Scholar Off-Campus

If you are on campus, Google Scholar will automatically configure itself properly. You only need to follow the steps below if you are OFF-CAMPUS.

Configure Google Scholar to allow you free access to materials licensed by UofT when you are off-campus:

  1. Go to Google Scholar
  2. Click Settings (menu at top of page)
  3. Click Library Links (menu at left of page)
  4. Type in University of Toronto, then hit enter to search
  5. Click the box University of Toronto Libraries - Get It! U of Toronto
  6. Click Save

Now you will be able to access materials that UofT has licensed.