Academic research (sometimes called scholarly or peer reviewed) describes journal articles written by academics or researchers in their field of expertise written for other experts in the field. The articles are often the published reports of research that they have conducted.
Choose your database based on your needs, and it always a good idea to try more than one database, to expand your search results.
Most of our Gale Databases search will list academic journals with your results. Click on "Academic Journals," "Full Text," and "Peer Reviewed Journals" to narrow your results. These terms will also help you narrow your results in other databases (especially "Full Text").
Some databases (such as Google Scholar) give you access to a number of abstracts (and the occasional full text). Occasionally, you will find an abstract (summary) that perfectly fits your needs, but you do not have access to the article. Boston Public Library or Shrewsbury Public Library may be able to get you a pdf of the article through inter library loan. I can easily fill out an request for you. Email me with information about the article, and I will try and get you access.
If you want any help with your academic research search, always feel free to come to Mrs. Bredberg for help.
Click here for a brief explanation of what academic research is.
Click here for tips about reading dense academic research articles.
Click here for resources to help you find and navigate academic research.
Boston Public Library offers eCards to all residents of Massachusetts. You can get or renew your BPL eCard here.
The Boston Public Library eCard will give you access to the JSTOR Database (a great resource for academic research in the humanities).
JSTOR is a scholarly journal database with great resources for academic research. You must have Boston Public Library eCard for JSTOR. Get the eCard here: bit.ly/bpltutorials
Curated collection of scholarly and academic resources.
Curated collection of scholarly and academic resources.
Accessible in the Shrewsbury High School building.
Provides access to many scientific magazines and journals for authoritative science content.
The following databases are free online, but much of their content is not free.
Mrs. Bredberg may be able to get access to articles that are behind a paywall.
Email her the article title and a link to the abstract, and she will request and digital copy.
