Key Resources for Research Articles

For improved results and to use advanced features, search a specific database. Some of the more frequently used databases are listed below. Additional databases can be found in individual subject pages.

Tutorials

Need a refresher on scholarly vs. non-scholarly sources, or primary vs. review articles, or the differences between qualitative and quantitative research? You can find PDF tutorials on these topics below.

Scholarly vs. Non-Scholarly Sources

Primary vs. Review Articles 

Quantitative vs. Qualitative: Comparing Two Kinds of Research

You can find these and many more tutorials on our Research Tutorials guide.

Topic Generation

Having trouble coming up with a topic for your project? Try browsing:

Medpage Today, a source of clinical news coverage across many specialties, written for healthcare professionals in the US.

Global Issues in Context, a resource offering international viewpoints on a broad spectrum of global issues, topics, and current events.

The articles in a recent academic journal in your discipline. You can find academic journals in your disciplines by searching your on Scholar OneSearch. Use the advanced search options to search for journals.

Research Essentials

Looking for articles but not sure where to start? For articles describing primary research, written by experts in the field, try the nursing and medical databases listed below.
The brief videos below will help you develop your research question, choose keywords and offer tips for improving your search results!

  1. Search nursing and health-related databases to find peer reviewed or scholarly articles on your topic.
  2. Choose keywords for your topic.
  3. Learn the shortcuts: use advanced search techniques to search databases more effectively and find the full text.
  4. Review articles which cite a relevant article, as well as the article's references, to discover more relevant material.
  5. Interlibrary Loan: Use ILLIad, our interlibrary loan service to request articles not owned by Snell Library. HINT:  click on the PDF link or the   "Check NU LIbrary" in your database search results. If the article is not available, you will be prompted to link to ILLiad to submit your request.
  6. Organize your citations using citation management tools such as RefWorks, EndNote, Mendeley or Zotero. Import your citations from your database search, then autoformat them into your preferred citation style, and insert the reference list into your paper.