Finding original research articles
When you're reading a newspaper or a popular magazine (e.g., New York Times,
Newsweek, Science Times, Psychology Today), you'll often come across articles
about research studies. The information below will explain how to locate the
primary research behind these articles.
1) Skim the newspaper/magazine article and identify as many of the following items as possible
- the name(s) of the researcher(s) who conducted the study described in the article
- the name of the journal in which the study was published
- the date of the research study and/or the date of the newspaper/magazine article
- the researcher(s) affiliation(s) (e.g. the university at which the researcher works)
- the key concepts or main focus of the research study
*Note: The title of the original research article will not be the same as the title of the popular article.
2) If you locate the name of the journal in which the study was published.- Go to the UW Libraries Catalog
- Select "Title" and "Journals" from the pull-down menus,
and type the journal name in the search box (click the screenshot below
to enlarge).
- Locate the item in the UW Libraries (online or in print) and navigate to the volume, issue, and year in which the study appears. Through online access you can browse or search the publication for the author's name and the key concepts in order to find the study. Be sure to click on the off-campus access link at the top right of the page if you want to access online articles from off-campus.
(Here are more detailed instructions on finding literature in the UW Libraries--if you are using a database other than PsycINFO, scroll ahead to slide #11.)
3) If you locate the author(s)' names but the journal/publication title is not mentioned:
- Find a database that indexes articles in the authors' discipline. (Be sure to click on the off-campus access link at the top right of the page if you want to access online articles from off-campus.) The UW Libraries Resources by Subject are a great starting point. Web of Science is an excellent starting point for locating literature in the field of biopsychology; PsycINFO is a great starting point for locating literature in numerous fields within psychology. It is linked from the Psychology Subject Guide.
- Do an author search for the author(s)' name(s) in the database. Combine that with a keyword search for the key concepts of the study.
- Browse the results to look for likely matches. If you don't find any, revise your search. Still no luck? Try a different database, or search the web for the author's name to find his/her list of publications.
Of course, you can always ask for help at anytime!
- For 24-hour a day help, chat with a librarian on Q&A Live
- Psychology students--click on this link for my contact information: Laura Barrett, Psychology Librarian