Databases

If you want to find out more about using our databases, information is provided in the sections below.  Click the headings to view the content.  

Alternatively, you can access our major database collections (e.g. EBSCO) directly via the tabs further down the page.  The three major database collections, which cover a variety of subject areas, are listed to the left (in alphabetical order).

What is a database?

Databases such as Academic Search Complete enable you to find references for a particular topic, or look up material by a specific author, for example.  This means you don't have to search through relevant journals separately.  

Databases sometimes have a discipline, or subject focus (e.g. MEDLINE).  You often need to search more than one. 

Most index journal articles, but many such also include books, book chapters, conference papers and theses.  Keele databases are typically accessed via software packages such as EBSCO, ISI Web of Knowledge and Proquest(see below).

Databases contain citation information - author, article title, journal (publication) title and so on, and often, an abstract (summary). 

 

Searching for Full-Text

Use "full-text" links to view articles online.  If this is not available, use the @Keele button to check for online and printed availability.

If the @Keele service is not available, record/print the references and use the E-journals A-Z service and Library Catalogue to search for the journal.  

Please be aware that we won't necessarily have access to all the references online. 

Items not available either online or in Library stock can usually be obtained through the Inter-Library Loans service

Other e-resource links

Click here to view resources relevant to particular Schools or subject areas

Click here to view our full A to Z listing of e-resources

EBSCO

EBSCO includes Academic Search Premier and Business Source Premier, which provide full-text, indexing and abstracts for several thousand journals.

EBSCO provides major databases indexing literature (principally journal articles) in other areas, some of which include some full-text.  These include:

AMED (Alternative & Complementary Medicine), CINAHLPlus with full-text, EconLit, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus with full-text, and others.

EBSCO also contains e-books - these were previously in the "NetLibrary" collection.   Useful titles are also in the Library Catalogue.   

 

ISI Web of Knowledge

The ISI Web of Knowledge service provides access to the ISI Web of Science, which comprises a number of citation indexes: 

  • *Science Citation Index Expanded (1970 onwards)
  • *Social Sciences Citation Index (1970 onwards)
  • *Arts and Humanities Citation Index (1975 onwards)
  • *Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (1990 onwards)
  • *Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Social Sciences & Humanities (1990 onwards)
  • Book Citation Index (Science & Social Sciences & Humanities editions) (2005 onwards)
  • Chinese Citation Index (citations from the Chinese Academy of Sciences) (1989 onwards)

Databases to which Keele has access are denoted by a * to the left.  

Please note: "Times Cited" counts from Web of Science date from 1900, regardless of institutional access, and the figures include the Book Citation and Chinese Citaton Index, together with counts from the BIOSIS Citation Index (1926 onwards). 

Counts from each of the databases can be seen by clicking the number to the right of Times Cited. A record may appear on more than one database, but the "total" figure does not include duplicates.  

Links to the citing articles, however, reflect Keele's access to each database.

 

Web of Knowledge also provides access to the following:

  • *BIOSIS Citation Index (1969 -)  (new, July 2011).  This important Life Sciences database includes:
    • Journal and non-journal literature (including patents, abstracts from meetings and books series)
    • All citations from BIOSIS Previews
    • Cited references for references unique to this database (2006 onwards)
    • Cited references from 1926 overlapping with Web of Science
  • *BIOSIS Previews (1969-).  Covers the following subject areas: life sciences, incorporating molecular and cell biology, pharmacology, endocrinology, genetics, neurosciences, infectious diseases, ecology and organismal biology
  • Information from Chinese Citation Index for "Timed Cited" counts (new, July 2011)
  • Information from the Books Citation Index for "Times Cited Counts" (new, 2012)
  • ISI Proceedings: Science & Technology edition (STP)
  • ISI Journal Citation Reports

 

News: A new version of the resource (5.6) is due for launch in April 2012. Please look out for further information on this. 

 

Proquest

ProQuest provides a large number of bibliographic databases, including several major ones. Coverage is not confined to the natural sciences.

Education databases previously on Dialog Datastar are now available on "Proquest-Dialog"-Proquest Professional (Australian Index & British Education Index). ERIC is also available via this collection, as well as on the main Proquest website (see above).

 

EDINA

A national data centre giving Keele users access to Digimap, Historic Digimap, Geology Digimap, Film and Sound Online, UKBORDERS (digitized UK boundary data), the Index to The Times, and a number of other services.

  • Access to EDINA
  • Access to EDINA is through the UK Federation. Click on the 'Log-In' button and select Keele University from the drop down list, then use your Keele log-in details to gain access.

UK Data Archive

The largest collection of accessible computer-readable data in the social sciences and humanities in the United Kingdom.

Guides & Help

Here is a list of some useful guides.  Guides for EBSCO and Proquest databases can be found on relevant Subject/School subject resource pages, as can the following:

ISI Web of Knowledge
 

This material will be updated to reflect changes to the resource due later this year.
 
 

Training sessions


Some of our training sessions may help you make effective use of these resources (e.g. EBSCO, Web of Knowledge):