Find a journal article

LibrarySearch is usually the best place to start when you need journal articles. It searches across much of Abertay’s journal content and often provides direct links to full text.

You can search by:

• article title
• keywords or topic
• author name
• DOI (Digital Object Identifier)

Use the filters on the results page to narrow your results, for example by:

• full text available
• peer-reviewed journals
• publication date

Use this approach when you already have details of an article, for example from a reading list or reference.

What to do: 

• Enter the article title into LibrarySearch
• If you have one, enter the DOI — this is often the most reliable way to find the exact article
• You can also search by author name combined with keywords

What to look for: 

• A result that matches the article title
• A Download PDF, View article, or similar full-text link

If you cannot find the article or access the full text, see Accessing full-text articles.

Use this approach when you are researching a subject or question.

Start with keywords: 

Think about the main concepts in your topic and choose a few key terms.

For example:

• instead of typing a full question, use keywords like
  climate change policy Scotland

Improve your search: 

• Try different combinations of keywords
• Use quotation marks to search for exact phrases (e.g. "climate change")
• Combine terms to narrow your results

Refine your results: 

Use filters in LibrarySearch to:

• limit to peer-reviewed journals
• focus on recent research
• narrow by subject area

You can also use tools such as Google Scholar to find journal articles.

However:

• not everything you find will be available through Abertay
• you may still need to use LibrarySearch to access the full text

If you find a useful article elsewhere, try:

• searching for the title in LibrarySearch
• checking access using the Checking access to a journal page

Use these strategies to improve your search results:

• Start broad, then narrow your search
• Try alternative keywords if your results are too limited
• Check the references in useful articles to find more sources
• Use LibrarySearch filters to focus on the most relevant material