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How To Do Research: Exploring Scholarly Articles

An introductory guide on the research process for graduate students.

Exploring Scholarly Articles

Exploring scholarly articles can be a great way to see what research has been conducted on your topic.

Start by searching for scholarly articles within the Discovery Search box on the library homepage, which searches most of the library's databases at once. Check the Scholarly (Peer-Reviewed) box to retrieve scholarly articles.

Begin your search by using broad terms related to your subject area, such as "entrepreneurship," "workplace safety," or "fire science." You will get many results, but your large set of articles will help you to note and explore possible research topics.

Especially take note of the following within your search results:

  • Subject terms related to the articles you retrieve. These will be in bold print beneath the article titles.
  • Article abstracts which summarize the content of the article. Click on the article titles in the results list to find the abstracts.
  • The limiting options available in the left column of your search results. You can limit by publication date, resource type, subject, and more.

Additional Resources:

Search Alerts

You can use database search alerts to obtain recently published scholarly articles in your field of study. Setting up database search alerts frees you from having to constantly check the library for new scholarly research on your topic; rather, you can have the content delivered directly to you via email as it is published.

See this guide for instructions on setting up search alerts within library databases.

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Research Appointments

Click button to schedule a research appointment

The CSU librarians can support you during the research process with personalized reference services. We are happy to help you with the following tasks:

  • Accessing and using the CSU Library databases in order to create a peer-reviewed literature review with library resources
  • Using free personalized database folders within multiple database platforms to organize your research
  • Brainstorming keywords and recommending search limiters to use
  • Locating the dissertations and theses that may support and inform your research process