Skip to Main Content
Lewis HS FCPS
yellow line

Government: IA (Cox, Illes & Sullivan): Databases

Database Search Tips

A to Z list of Lewis Library Databases

DATABASE PASSWORDS

When you are not at school, Databases require passwords.
You must sign in to your FCPS gmail account in order to view the document

Databases make citing sources as easy as possible:

  • Most library databases include a citation tool for articles & resources.

Need more help?

Databases 

  • Paid for by the library.  
  • Cannot be searched in Google.
  • Includes sources written by professors, scholars, journalists, "smart people", etc.
  • Authority of information is verified by experts.

Websites

  • Access is free.  No one is paying for the content.
  • Anyone can publish a website.  The information included might not verified by anyone.
  • Can be searched in a variety of search engines, including Google.
  • Must examine with a critical eye!

Databases:

Depending upon the type, often include many types of information.

For example:

  • Scholarly journals

  • Citations

  • Ebooks

  • Abstracts

  • Book reviews

  • News articles

  • Magazine articles

  • Images

  • Videos

Use search limit fields to receive back the type of information you need for your assignment.

Advanced Online Search Tips

ADVANCED ONLINE SEARCHING TECHNIQUES

Quotation Marks: Notifies the computer to treat a phrase as one single word, rather than searching on each word individually.

  • “prisoner of war”

Boolean Operators:  AND, OR, NOT  Used to combine terms and therefore limit results.

  • Hamlet AND imagery         
  • “mental illness” OR “mental disorder”     
  • Communism NOT China       

Truncation: Searching different forms of a word.

  • ALL DATABASES: econom* 
    • finds economy, economic, economics, economical, etc.

Wildcard:  Taking into account UK spelling, plurals, unknown spelling, and other forms of the word.

  • ALL DATABASES:  ? replaces one character
    • defen?e  finds defense (American spelling)  and defence (UK spelling)
    • theat?? Finds theater and theatre

Nesting:  Using parentheses to combine different commands, telling the computer which order to complete them.

  • ALL DATABASES:
    • constitution AND (“death penalty” OR “capital punishment”)

Subject Headings: The controlled vocabulary every article and book is cataloged under.

  • Keyword:  bullying              
  • Subject Heading:  Adolescent Aggressiveness
    • *Use Subject Guide Search in Academic OneFile to narrow subject focus.

Boolean Logic

General Reference Databases (NOT SCHOLARLY)

These databases are great for background information about a topic.

Learn about your topic and look for clues (key words) you can use to find more in depth information.

Datbases: Start Here

Ready for more in depth information?

These databases are the place to start:

Best Bets for Databases (Contain SCHOLARLY Articles)

Seeking a variety of information sources? 

Try one of these databases: