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Research Guides

Comprehensive Searching in the Social Sciences

Deciding which database to use (and if you need to use more than one) is an important part of building a successful search. Consider:

  • Is there a database focused on your area of study?
  • Is there a database commonly used by people working in your area of study?
  • Would you be interested in how researchers in other disciplines engage with your topic?

To answer the first two questions, use Subjects A-Z. This section of the library website lists article databases most commonly used in each research discipline.

If your answer to the third question is “yes,” you may want to choose a multi-disciplinary database like Scopus and/or use more than one subject database.

The use of more than one subject database (sometimes in combination with a multi-disciplinary database) is often a requirement of a successful comprehensive search of the literature. This is because no database indexes all relevant sources. So, by searching more than one, you increase the likelihood of capturing as many relevant sources as possible.

Finding databases using LibrarySearch

If you’d like to supplement Subjects A-Z and find other databases to include in your search, you can use the Database Search tool embedded in the LibrarySearch interface. Search by subject keyword to find databases related to your topic.

For example, search for Anthropology to find databases like the following:

More about LibrarySearch

LibrarySearch is a multi-disciplinary search tool that combines the contents of the University of Toronto library catalogue with the contents of a database called the Ex Libris Central Discovery Index (CDI).

By merging these two indexes, LibrarySearch allows you to search for books, films, maps, music, data sets, and other material owned or licensed by the library, while simultaneously searching for articles (journal articles, newspaper articles, and other publications normally requiring the use of an article database).

Consider using LibrarySearch when you want to see a broad range of publication formats, results from across disciplines, and unique or rare items held by the library that may not be available anywhere else.

Visit the LibrarySearch guide to learn more about LibrarySearch including topics like basic and advanced search features, topic searching, citing and exporting citations, account information, and much more.