LibGuides: PSY 193H (Hahn-Holbrook): Search Tips

Search Tips

You can find keywords in several ways:

1) Brainstorm words that are related to the words in your search; e.g.:

education
high school
middle school
students

2) Look for words that databases use as controlled vocabulary (in PsycINFO, find this using the Thesaurus tool):

Example

Use "quotation marks" to search for a phrase
Example: "public health"
Truncation
Save time by searching multiple forms of a word simultaneously.
colleg* finds college, colleges, collegium, collegial
col*r finds color, colour, colander
Boolean Operators
Use boolean operators to get better search results.
AND to join dissimilar terms, e.g. cloning AND ethics
OR to join similar terms, e.g. ethic* OR moral*
NOT to exclude some results, e.g. cloning NOT reproductive
Limiters
Use limiters to refine and narrow your search.

Finding a Known Item

You found a reference in a bibliography and you want to locate the original item. Here are some suggestions.

Type the article or book title in Google Scholar .
Type the article or book title in U C Library Search.
Type the journal title in UC Library Search's Journals@UCMerced section.
Select a database in the appropriate subject area, type the article title in the search box, then select Title for your search field.

Accessing Full-Text

When you find an article in a database, the full-text may be immediately available via a pdf or html page. If not, use the Get It At UC button to reach a request page.

Here's an example of an article you would need to use Get It At UC to get the full text:

Preconception healthcare delivery at a population level: construction of public health models of preconception care

If Get It At UC doesn't give you any options to read the full-text online, you can Interlibrary Loan (ILL) the item using your UCMnetID. Here's an example of an article you would need to ILL:

Self-determined to exercise? Leisure-time exercise behavior, exercise motivation, and exercise dependance in youth

You can Interlibrary Loan the item using your UCMnetID.

ILL articles are usually delivered in electronic format.

You will receive an email when your article is available
Log in to My ILL Request using your UCM Net ID (e.g. jsmiith), Password, and Home Campus
Enter the ILL number listed in the email in the Jump to ILL box
The request information will appear; look for the link to the pdf on the last line next to Attached Documents
You must be on campus or logged in on the VPN from off campus in order to access your article

If you experience difficulty accessing your article through My ILL Request, please contact the ILL department by replying to the email notification you received for the article.

More about InterLibrary Loan

5200 N. Lake Road
Merced, CA 95343
library@ucmerced.edu
(209) 228-4444