Review items--to see if they support your thesis
When you do a search, you may find TONS of results. Or you may find only a few. But the best results are usually near the top.
1. Read the titles of the first 10-20 items.
- When you find a good title, click it.
- The full description of the item opens.
- Below is a sample scholarly journal article:
2. Review the Article's Title, Subject Terms, and Abstract. (These are highlighted below.)
- Could this article help support your thesis?
- If so, see the directions below to view the full text and to email it to yourself.
- If not, try another item record OR try a different search. For example, instead of "working conditions" try burnout in its place.
Now use the directions below.
Open the full text of an article
To find the Full Text link, look to the left of the title.
- In this case, it is in PDF format. Sometimes it is in HTML format.
- In either case, just click the link.
- Now see the directions in the box below this one.
Email the article to yourself, with an MLA citation
When you click a PDF, this is what you get. You can scroll through the entire article.
IMPORTANT: Email the article to yourself!
- Click the Email icon (at right). It looks like an envelope.
- Type in your email address
- Type in a customized Subject line. This is what you will see in your email inbox. Help yourself out: make it specific!
- The email will contain...
- The full text article (PDFs will be attachments).
- An MLA style citation, which you can copy and paste into your Works Cited list. (You need to proofread it first)
For more on MLA citations, see the Write & Cite tab in this Research Guide.
You are ready to search!
- Click here to return to the Stage 2 box
- Open MegaSearch, and begin searching.
- When you finish, go to Stage 3.