psy3330 dissertation workshops

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Literature searching for your dissertation

unihub.mdx.ac.uk / study / library

PSY3330

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What we will cover today

• Reminder: Finding Tests

• Reminder: Advanced searching

• Keywords and search operators (* “ ” etc)

• Strategic searching: when there’s nothing on your

topic

• Referencing

• Where you can get help

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Finding resourcesmyUniHub > My Study > My Library

Access all sorts of online resources here!

My Library – most of the links you will ever need

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Psychological TESTS

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My library > Databases

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PsycTESTS database

Simple subject search

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Or author/test name search

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Click here to limit to full text

TESTS

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Not all tests in PsycINFO are full text

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Literature Searching

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Advanced searches – Web of Science

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Advanced searches - PsycINFO

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Get better results & find things faster• Spelling US v UK:

• behavior / behaviour • counselor / counsellor

• Truncate *: • Offend* = offending, offender, offenders • Counsel* = counselling, counsellor,

counsellors• Behav* = behavior, behaviour, behavioural,

behavioral

• Phrases (exact words in that order)• “substance abuse”• “cogntive behav* therapy”

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Databases for research articles myUniHub > My Study > My Library > Databases

Search for database by letter, then name

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Web of Science

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Web of Science

Gives you a hyperlinked

list of articles

which cite this article

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Citation searching

• Which articles have cited an earlier article• Updates to the research study you’ve been looking at• Find articles on similar/related subject• How many times an article has been cited• Best journals in your field

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Looks kind of like this...

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PsycINFO – Access via Unihub > Databases

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PsycINFO – options and limits

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limits Full text

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Tasks

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therapy AND offenders AND mental illness

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So a narrower search is….

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CBT AND prisoners AND mental illness

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Other ways to narrow your topic

• People or participants:– Racial/cultural/nationality groups– Age– Type of participant

• Way you measure it• Sub-factors (E.g. Media effect on

self esteem):– Fashion and Beauty media– Effect on body image or self worth– Among Women / students

– Among students in UK/Dubai/Mauritius

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Repeat and improve

• Repeat, improve = improved results. • Try different things, react to your searches• Follow citations• Expand your keywords as you go • Alternative or new keywords in results— Re-run your searches

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Task 2 – Strategic searching

• A + B + C = results• But what if it doesn’t?

• a + b• b + c• a + c

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• Peer, media and family influences among African and Afro-Caribbean women and the effects on self esteem and body image

— Media influences on women and their self image— Peer/family/cultural influences on women and their self image— Media influences on Black/Afro Caribbean populations and their

confidence/self image — Media influences on people’s self worth and body image

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Splitting up your searches

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• Impact of missing father figure on teenage girls— Missing father figure with teenage boys — Missing father figure - influence on adult women — Missing father figure - influence on very young female

children — Key stages of development for teenagers — Parenting and its role in development

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Splitting up your searches

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Splitting up your searches

• Effectiveness of mentoring on young homeless people— Mentoring and young people— Mentors and homeless people — Support for homeless people getting out of homelessness

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Task - strategic searching – splitting up your topic

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Cite them right

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examples Gives you a formatted example to type over

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Managing your references• 2 choices of referencing software at MDX

• Flow – simple to use, limited functionality, fine for essays

• Refworks – slightly more complex to use but more functional

• Both will allow you to import citations from databases and both will format your reference list for you.

• Go to Psychology Library Subject Guide and find the section on referencing

libguides.mdx.ac.uk/psy/referencing

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It’s not in the Library!• Inter Library Loans

http://bit.ly/InterLibraryLoans

• SCONUL Access http://www.access.sconul.ac.uk/sconul-access

• Other libraries http://bit.ly/visitingotherlibraries

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To access the Library Subject Guide

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Need help?

• Psychology Library Subject Guide

http://libguides.mdx.ac.uk/psy

• Librarians in the StudyHub (1st floor) Monday – Friday 9-5

• Viv – your librarian v.eades@mdx.ac.uk