PSY 161: Fundamentals of Psychology: Finding Empirical Articles

• Determine keywords for your topic.
• Check the thesaurus of the database to see if there is more appropriate terminology.
• Use "Advanced Search" and enter your keywords in separate boxes.
• Use "Refine Search" to narrow down your results.
• See "Subject: Major Heading" for a list of thesaurus/subject terms related to your search.
• Check the methodology of the article in the detailed record by clicking on the title.
• Use the icons to print/email/cite the article.

If you cannot find the full text of an article in the database you are using, follow the steps below to locate the article:

Empirical research reports the results of a study that uses data derived from actual observation or experimentation.  Empirical research articles are primary sources.

An empirical research article typically includes the following sections:

• Methods
• Results
• Discussion

The following  methodologies are examples of empirical research and therefore,  primary sources:

• Empirical study
• Quantitative study
• Qualitative study
• Clinical study
• Longitudinal study

Articles on empirical research can be accessed by completing a search in the library databases, such as PsycINFO (see below). You can locate the methodology of an article in PsycINFO by clicking on the title of the article and looking at the detailed record.

PsycINFO is a psychology database available through the Saint Leo library.  

IF YOU ARE FOLLOWING THE VIDEO BELOW, select PsycINFO instead of selecting all of the databases available in EBSCO.

EBSCO contains several psychology-related databases

• Academic Search Complete
• Academic Search Premier
• APA PsycInfo
• APA PsycArticles
• CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature)
• Psychology and Behavioral Sciences
• SocIndex
• Search all of these databases at the same time by searching EBSCO

Other Recommended Databases for Psychology Research

ProQuest One

Science Direct

SAGE

The PICOT Search tool assists medical researchers in formulating clinical questions using guided search boxes based on the PICOT acronym. EBSCO Discovery Service and EBSCOhost support this by providing dedicated search boxes for each PICOT element:

• P – Population, problem or patient (required): Identify the patient problem or population. Describe either the patient's chief complaint or generalize the patient's comparison to a larger population.

• I - Intervention (required): Include the use of a specific diagnostic test, treatment, adjunctive therapy, medication or recommendation to the patient to use a product or procedure.

• C - Comparison (recommended): The main alternative you are considering. It should be specific and limited to one alternative.

• O – Outcome (optional): Specify the result(s) of what you plan to accomplish, improve or affect and should be measurable. Specific outcomes will yield better search results and allow you to find the studies that focus on the outcomes you are searching for.

• T – Time (optional): Specify the time frame needed to achieve the Outcome.

This PICOT framework helps researchers create focused, effective research questions and search strategies, making their queries more precise and keyword specific. 

Go to this link to learn more: https://connect.ebsco.com/s/article/Using-PICOT-Search-in-EBSCO-Discovery-Service-and-EBSCOhost?language=en_US

A literature review is an in-depth critical study of the "literature," or published material, in a narrowly defined area.

Scholars and professionals use literature reviews as useful reports that keep them up-to-date in their field. The depth and breadth of the literature review emphasizes the credibility of the writer in his or her field. Keep in mind that a literature review has a clear focus but is not its own study and does not attempt to contribute new information to the existing literature. (Source: Purchase College Learning Center)

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