How you carry out your research will depend on the type of assignment you have been asked to do.
Start with the books on your reading list and then widen your reading by using the library catalogue to find other books on your topic. Books are useful as an introduction to the topic, and will cover the main issues that you need to consider. Remember that books are not regularly updated, so check the publication date of any book you use.
If you want to find articles or commentary from the industry itself, look at practitioner magazines or search their websites. There may also be databases that include reports, briefings and news such as Building, Social Care Online and The Art Newspaper. In Discover, select both Magazines and Trade Publications in the Source Types list - however, be aware that many of the results may refer to US research. Practitioner resources are useful for the latest news, trends, profiles of key people in the industry, and career information. Also keep an eye on the key government departments - Ofsted, Departments of Education, Health, Environment, Culture, Business & Trade etc.
If you have been asked to find research or scholarly articles on your topic, which apply theory to primary research, use Discover. You will need to make decisions on how recent your research needs to be, bearing in mind that there may be older studies that might still be useful. You can also narrow by keywords, where possible using specialised terminology or a key issue you have identified. You will also need to think about alternative terms - create strings of related terms using OR between each term or phrase. Use official terms if possible, and if a term is shortened to its initials, use both versions - for example "national health service" OR NHS to make sure you pick up on all the articles in your area. After running your search, click on Academic Journals in the Source Types list to restrict your search.
If you are interested in a topic that is changing fast, it can be useful to set up emails or follow an organisation on Instagram or Twitter/X to get the latest information. Click on the 'Keeping up-to-date' tab for more information and some suggestions.
If you are researching a particular topic, the best way to find journal articles or newspaper reports is to use a database such as Discover. Think carefully about your topic and identify the keywords that best describe the information you need. See the tab on Search Tips for more information on constructing a search strategy.
There are thousands of journal articles in the databases so you need to be specific. These 5 steps will help you to plan your search strategy when looking for information to support your assignment.
Step 1: Identify the main ideas or concepts in your assignment.
Does attending specialised eating disorder support groups reduce instances of anorexia or bulimia in men?
Step 2: Identify keywords.
Go through your notes to find different words that could describe the same thing
Step 3: Decide which database to use. If you want to find academic journal articles, we recommend that you start by using Discover which searches across the majority of library databases. If you wish to find specialist information, check your subject pages other databases the Librarian has recommended.
Step 4: Use the Advanced Search function. This allows you to put a keyword or a string of keywords on each line and then combine your terms. You should be prepared to run your search a few times to get the best results. Use speech marks to search for a phrase, and use the asterix symbol to find words with a variety of endings (therap* will find Therapy or Therapist).
Advanced Search example - use three search fields.
Men OR Males
"Support Group" OR Counselling OR Therapy
"Eating Disorders OR anorexia OR bulimia.
Step 5: Check your results. If you have too many results, narrow by adding more search terms to focus your search, or restrict your results by date, publication type (journal, newspaper). You should also look at the subject terms that are used to describe the best results, and re-run your search using those terms.
Find 2 or 3 good articles in Discover and follow up any references that look useful in the author's own bibliography.
Check your articles in Google Scholar. (For more information on Google Scholar, click on the Google Scholar tab) and try the following:
You may not be able to access the full text of the related or cited by articles, but if you set up Library Links in Google Scholar (see the video below) which will tell you if the article is available in our online library. You can also check by logging in to our A-Z list of journal titles and typing in the journal name. If we do have that journal you will see a link that you can click on to browse the volumes, and find your article.
If you can't find the journal, or if you find a book mentioned on a website or Amazon, you may be able to order it on Inter-Library Loan. Click on our Moodle ILL page here and fill in the form.
Google Scholar is a free resource that you can use to find scholarly literature, online reports and other academic and professional information. It includes freely available information that is not included in your library databases, such as reports from professional organsations. However, much of the scholarly information will not be available in full text, so you should use it alongside the databases to access the full article.
Bradford College Library has worked with Google Scholar to allow you to link through to full text articles that we provide access to straight from your Google Scholar results. To set up the full text links:
When you open up Google Scholar, you will see alongside some of your results the words 'Full Text Available'. Click on the link.
You may see a page saying 'If the page does not display, then open the page in a new window'. Click on this link to view your article.
There are many tools to help you organise your work. You can save references in Word which can be easily imported as citations or into bibliographies. You can create profiles in Discover, EBSCO databases and Emerald to save items to view later, and export citations. If you have a large number of articles, websites and book records to keep track of, we recommend you start using referencing software. Using something like Menderley will allow you to create your own online library, where you can store and manage everything you want to keep in one place, saving you time. Referencing software allows you to:
For links and guidance to these services, click on the tab for Literature Review and Dissertations and scroll down to the section on Referencing Management Software.
There are many tools to help you organise your work. You can save references in Word which can be easily imported as citations or into bibliographies. You can create profiles in Discover to save items to view later, and export citations (this will include Emerald references). If you have a large number of articles, websites and book records to keep track of, we recommend you start using referencing software. Using something like Menderley will allow you to create your own online library, where you can store and manage everything you want to keep in one place, saving you time. Referencing software allows you to:
Some referencing management tools also have social networking features.
Which referencing management tool is best for you? The chart below may answer some of your questions, or click on the tabs for more detailed information and guides.
| Name of Software | Use this for | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Word - References tool | Adding citations and references to your Word document as you write. Add details of the publication using a simple form with source types such as Book, Journal Article and Website. Select the output style (eg.Harvard). Can also generate bibliographies. | Good for shorter assignments and encourages you to keep track of all your references. |
| Discover and Emerald folders | Saving articles to folders which can then be easily accessed at any time. Create hierarchical folders to organise articles by module and topic. Provides a Cite feature so you can copy and paste references in the correct format. Citations can be exported into Menderley or Zotero. | Good for easily retrieving articles which are available from Discover. |
| Menderley | Adding documents that you have saved on your computer using drag-and-drop, or install the web importer to directly import from the web. Organise articles into folders. Menderley saves PDF versions where available so you can have an online library. You can also save directly to Menderley from Emerald. | Saves PDFs and offers a number of social features. |
This is a very useful tool within Microsoft word and is worth getting familiar with as soon as you start writing your first assignment.
In-text citation
Along the top of your Word document you will see tab called References (you may be familiar with using this to add footnotes). To add an in-text citation, put your cursor at the point where you want your reference to appear. Click on References and choose Harvard. Select Insert Citation. Choose Add New Source. Choose the type of source that you are citing - book, journal article, web-site etc. Then fill in the details. Once you have saved your citation, the information will be available for you to use again.
Bibliography / Reference List
Once you have added your citations, you can create a bibliography with that information. Put the cursor where you want the bibliography to go, then select References and choose a format. Then click on Bibliography and click on Insert Bibliography.
Adding new citations
If you add new citations to your document, you can update your bibliography by right clicking anywhere in your list and selecting Update Field.
What are folders in Discover?
When you search Discover (or any ESBCOhost database such as SocIndex or Business Source) you will notice that a small folder icon appears next to all your search results. This icon allows you to save your results into folders which you can access any time you log into any EBSCO database.
In Discover you also have the option to save and re-run searches, and set up search and journal alerts so you can keep researching even when you’re not logged in.
Saving items to your Folder
Start your search. Remember you can limit your search by Date of Publication, by Source (Academic Journals, Magazines, Trade Publications, Books), and by Subject, Language, and more.
To save individual records, click on the Add to Folder image next to each record. If you have already created folders, you will be given the option to save the record in any of those folders. Otherwise, just save to My Folder.
Viewing your folder
View your folder by either clicking on Folder View in the top right of the screen, or the My Folder icon in the top bar. You should see a list of all the records that you have saved and you can access the full-text from here.
The My Custom feature provides the ability to create numerous folders, each on a particular topic, in which various results can be stored. You can also create sub-folders to manage more results. Click on the New link to the right of the My Custom link. You will see a Create New Folder Screen to enter your topic name and a description if you wish.
You can now move your results to the new folder by clicking in the box beside the title of the result, and clicking on the Move To drop down list. You will see a list of your folders displayed.
From Folder View, you can go back to your search results by clicking on the back button.
For more information on Folders, click on the Question mark next to your name in the top left of the screen.
Printing, Email and Saving Your Results.
You can Print, Email, or Save your results. You can also export to referencing software such as Zotero and EndNote Web. If you have Mendeley Desktop on your device, you can also download to there. Click on the icons to the right of the screen. .
Starting Out
The Mendeley video below is a 1 minute introduction to Mendeley. More help videos are available on their YouTube site here.
Uploading articles from Discover
If you find an article you want to save in your Discover results, click on the Export option in the right hand column. Click on the first option (Direct export in RIS format) and select Save. You will see the export file download (and which will also appear in your downloads folder): click on that and the reference will be imported into Mendeley Desktop. Note that Mendeley doesn't need to be open but it does need to be installed on the machine that you are using.
Uploading webpages or PDFs from the Internet - in progress
Creating citations and bibliographies - in progress
Find Related Research - in progress
Collaboration and Sharing Tools - in progress
How to Research by
"I found this book brilliant, I had never undertaken anything like a dissertation before and this book had everything in it that I needed to know. It is written in 'simple English' which is a bonus as some books are just too hard to understand. Everything you need to know about writing your dissertation is in here. I would recommend this book to all levels." *****Review of the third edition from Amazon.co.uk How to Research is a bestselling, practical book that reassures the first time researcher by leading them systematically through the whole research process; from the initial meetings with a supervisor to critically evaluating their ideas, doing the research and finally writing up the project. The book includes vignettes to help readers relate to research examples and provides both methodological and process information. New features in this edition include: Additional coverage on literature reviews New material on changes in research ethics More detailed information on the use of diaries, internet ethnographies and visual methods Increased coverage of mixed methodologies How to Research 4e is an ideal resource for the first-time researcher doing a small-scale research project in the social sciences whether they are at university or in the workplace. It supports its readers as they develop their skills to become more experienced researchers.
The Student's Guide to Research Ethics by
Why should every researcher consider the ethical implications of their work? What constitutes ethical research? How can best practice be maintained throughout a research project? This reader-friendly book examines the ethical issues and questions that occur in university and professional research and will help both beginning and experienced researchers to identify ethical issues when they are conducting research. The book thoroughly examines the broader ethical issues that arise throughout research, from the design stage through to data collection and analysis. It also investigates topical issues such as content, confidentiality and ethical questions in the dissemination of research. There are also discussions of ethical theories as well as case studies that highlight dilemmas and how they can be avoided or resolved. This new edition is thoroughly updated to reflect the greater emphasis researchers must now place on ethics and includes information on: Ethical concerns of the internet and technology Regulatory frameworks and research governance Ethical requirements of funding bodies The involvement of research participants in research design Codes of ethics within different disciplines 'Ethical Dialogue' and 'Ethical Dilemmas' boxes feature throughout the book in order to highlight key issues. There are also further reading sections at the end of each chapter as well as expanded coverage of plagiarism. The Student's Guide to Research Ethics is an invaluable tool for both undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as professionals who research as part of their jobs.
The good research guide : for small-scale social research projects by
This 6th edition offers guidance for success in small scale research projects, with new sections on ethics, Internet research, phenomenology, grounded theory and image-based methods.
Research Methodology by
Written specifically for students with no previous experience of research and research methodology, the Fourth Edition of Research Methodology breaks the process of designing and doing a research project into eight manageable STEPs. The book contains straightforward, practical guidance on: - Formulating a research question - Ethical considerations - Carrying out a literature review - Choosing a research design - Selecting a sample - Collecting and analysing qualitative and quantitative data - Writing a research report The fourth edition has been revised and updated to include improved learning features throughout the text to help students consolidate their knowledge, a new text design to make the book more engaging, and a brand new companion website with resources for lecturers and students. The book is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students in the social sciences embarking on qualitative or quantitative research projects.
How to Do Your Research Project by
How to Do Your Research Project continues to lead the way as an essential guide for anyone undertaking a research project in the applied social sciences. The new Third Edition of this best-selling title now includes further advice on concluding, writing, and presenting research, using social media and digital methods, and understanding how to effectively work with supervisors. Setting out a clear and detailed road map, author Gary Thomas guides the reader through the different stages of a research project, explaining key steps, and processes at each level in refreshingly jargon-free terms. Readers will learn: How to choose your research question Project management and study skills Effective literature reviews Methodology, theory, and research design frames Ethics and access Data collection tools Effective data analysis Discussing findings, concluding, and writing up Available with Perusall--an eBook that makes it easier to prepare for class Perusall is an award-winning eBook platform featuring social annotation tools that allow students and instructors to collaboratively mark up and discuss their SAGE textbook. Backed by research and supported by technological innovations developed at Harvard University, this process of learning through collaborative annotation keeps your students engaged and makes teaching easier and more effective. Learn more.
Social Research: : issues, methods and process by 
Doing Research in the Real World by
From first planning to writing up your research, this complete guide will help you push your project forward. Walking you through every step you need to take, it helps you build your knowledge of theory and methods and offers straightforward guidance to empower you to make good research decisions and learn best practice. This fifth edition: Draws on over 70 case studies of research in action to demonstrate potential pitfalls - and how to avoid them. Adds a new chapter on data management, providing how-to guidance on storing your research data. Provides more than 150 activities to help you develop your understanding of key concepts and advance your research methods knowledge. Illustrates how research methods skills transfer to the workplace, helping you boost your employability. Accompanied by online resources including videos, case studies and further reading that bring methods to life, this accessible book is still the definitive research companion for any student doing a research project.
