| Search Engine | Database | |
| What does it search? |
Search engines search the world wide web. However, not all search engine content will be free, and it does not search the 'invisible' or 'deep' web (such as paid databases). |
Databases search a controlled repository of (typically academic) content, often with full-text options. Databases are typically accessed through an institution like a public library as they are usually paid services. |
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When should I |
If you are searching for research purposes, be sure that you have the time to evaluate your sources. |
Databases are most frequently used for college and university research, but they do have good materials for high school as well! |
| Where should I start? |
There are many different search engines. Because search engines are primarily commercial ventures that include advertising and therefore have different criteria for how they display their results, we recommend that you try searching a few different ones to see what the different results are like. Some search engines include: |
Every database compiles different information, but the strategies for using them efficiently is similar. Check out the pages in the Effective Searching tab to learn strategies for searching databases and our Common Databases page for ones Crescent Library recommends. |
If you want to check the credibility of a scholarly source by seeing where it has been cited, it's easy to do so through Google Scholar. This is also great way to find more sources or to find more recent ones on the same or a similar topic if your article is old or out of date.
Simply type in the title of the article you want (remember to use quotations around it to search for it exactly!) and check for 'Cited by'. (You can also try 'Related articles' if you're just looking for similar sources.)
Clicking on this will open up a list of all the sources that cite that other source, which can be checked for where they are cited, so on and so forth.
Remember that you may not have access to these articles -- check with Ms. Antchak and she will try and find it for you!
Peer-reviewed is a scholarly term that means an article was reviewed by a panel of experts -- basically, the author's peers, hence the name. It is the responsibility of this panel to determine whether or not the article has been exhaustively and properly researched, it contributes to existing articles and sources, and whether the author is qualified to write on the subject.
You will not typically find peer-reviewed material outside of academic journals and they are not what you will use in your papers as they are typically written for those in the field who will have an understanding of the contents and terminology and for university-level research.
Popular refers to most articles out there that you'll find in any newspaper, magazine, or website. They are short and casual, using everyday language and terminology.