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Psychology Research Guide: Getting Started

Your Assignment

Peer-Reviewed (Scholarly) Psychology Article  

Many times, a psychology assignment will ask for a peer-reviewed, or scholarly, article.  This means that the article must be from a scholarly journal.  When we talk about peer-reviewed, it means that other scholars in the field have read the article and determined the information to be correct.  

If you have questions about your assignment, talk to your instructor.  They are the best resource when it comes to what they are looking for when it comes to your assignment.

Tips and Tricks

Here are some tips to make sure you get a psychology research article when searching the EbscoHost databases Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Elite, and PsycARTICLES.

  • Add "study" to a search box and change the dropdown menu to AB-Abstract so that the databases pull articles that mention "study" in the abstract.
  • Add method in one search box and result in another search box to get articles that have a Method and Result section.
  • Add psych* in a search box and change the drop down menu to SO-Source so the databases retrieve articles from journals that have a form of psych in the title.  For example:  Psychiatric Quarterly, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Psychological Assessment, etc.
  • Click the box that says Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals to ensure that your results are scholarly articles.

Find Books

You have access to millions of titles through Archway, our library catalog, and MOBIUS, the statewide catalog. Students often find recently published titles about their topics or use slightly older titles as additional resources. Remember to search for books early (they can take a week or so to arrive at our campuses).

Library Resources Required

You are required to use library resources to find a peer-reviewed psychology article. So what does your instructor mean by this? Your instructor wants you to use databases to find reliable and up-to-date information about your topic.  Check out the Recommended Resources tab to begin searching.


 

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