PsycINFO & APA (Hamilton): PsycINFO
Important Note
Please be sure to review the information on the Before You Search! tab on the left menu before you begin searching in the tools listed on this tab. The Before You Search! tab explains what a "peer reviewed" article is and how to tell when you have found one. It also gives tips for building more effective searches. There are brief videos and tutorials that explain how to choose the best keywords, refine your searches, and evaluate the information you find.
Searching in PsycINFO
PsycINFO
Requires your MU ID and password when connecting off campus
PsycINFO is the most commonly used article database by students, instructors, and researchers in the field of psychology. It will help you find scholarly journal articles specifically about psychology topics. PsycINFO has many search options that let search for very specific types of articles, which is a great timesaver when doing research in this discipline.
Type in your keywords in the text boxes at the top of the screen. You will sometimes see a list of synonyms for your terms with "or" between them. Select that list to find articles that describe your topic in different ways.
Before clicking enter, scroll down the page to see and select additional search options. I suggest limiting by:
- Check the box for Peer Reviewed
- Check the box to Exclude Dissertations
- Entering a range for Publication Year to get recently published information. You can enter dates in the boxes or select one of the options below those boxes. Ask your instructor what an appropriate date range is for your topic and assignment.
- English language
- Document type: Journal Article
- Population group: Human.
- Optional: If you have a specific patient Gender in mind, you can also select that by holding down the Ctrl button.
If your results list is too large after this search, choose the "All Filters" button at the top of the page and limit by:
- The Subject of the articles.
- Place a check in the box next to any of the subjects that fit your topic.
- Note that the most common subjects appear in the column, but there are typically additional subjects to choose from. Access these by clicking the more link at the bottom of the list.
- Optional: If you have specific Age Groups in mind, you can select that as well.
Selecting Articles and Locating Full Text
See additional information about an article by clicking on its title.
- Scroll down the page to read the abstract to get a better feel for what the article is about.
- If you want the whole article after reading the abstract, look for an Access now
or Access options
button in the light gray box at the top of the page. (See screenshot at the bottom of the box) - If there is a Find It!
button click to search for the full text beyond PsycINFO. On the new screen that opens, click Sign in on the yellow bar to see options for accessing the article. This might be a link to the full text or you may need to select Request Article from Interlibrary Loan (or ILL), which instructs the library to find a copy for you from another library that subscribes to the journal. The library can usually find a copy, but this can take up to a week, so ILL is not a good option if you need an article right away.
For each article, there is a toolbar of icons at the top right of the screen. Clicking these will allow you to:
Temporarily save the article during your current session. If you close your browser, these items will be lost.
Cite the article in a variety of citation formats.
Permanently save the article in a project folder in Ebsco. To use this feature, you will need to first register for a free Ebsco account.
Share the article to your Google Drive, OneDrive, or with anyone using the "Create link" option
There is also a second way to download the article via this toolbar
