SCWK 450 Berghoef
Getting Started With Your Research
- Look over your assignment. Highlight the main point and key words you need for your search strategy.
- Gather basic information about your topic. Reference materials (print and electronic) and books in the general collections (also print and electronic) will help you get started.
- Form your thesis statement: what are you trying to research or describe?
- Break your thesis statement into concepts - what two or three words describe the major points of your project?
- Think about alternate forms and synonyms of the words used.
- Develop "concept blocks"- each concept block made of similar words that describe a topic.
- Search the databases using keywords from your concept blocks.
- Try this power point to give you some further direction: Getting Started With Research
Research Guides: Social Work
Two Subject Reference Guides, Social Work resources in print and Social Work resources online are available to help you research.
Where to Find Material at FLITE: Finding Books
To find books that FLITE owns, try using a Subject search in the Online Catalog. Many subject headings are intuitive, but if nothing comes up, either try a synonym as a Subject search or use a Keyword search.
Book Locations:
- Main Stacks, Call Numbers A-H - Lower Level
- Main Stacks, Call Number J-Z - Third Floor
- Reference - First Floor
- Government Documents - Second Floor
Where to Find Material at FLITE: Finding Journal Articles (Databases)
To find journal articles on a particular topic, it's necessary to use one or more of the databases available on the FLITE Web site. These databases cumulatively provide indexing to thousands of journal titles. A few of the databases provide full-text (content of the articles is found directly within the database), but most only provide citations (description of where the article originally appeared in print).
Some of the databases we recommend you try include:
JSTOR
Lexis-Nexis Statistical Universe
PsycINFO
Social Science Abstracts
Social Work Abstracts
State of the Nation
ERIC
Social Science Databases at FLITE
Internet Resources for Social Work
Fed Stats
Government Statistics
U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
National Priorities Project
Child Stats
Off Campus Access - FLITE Distance Education Library Services
One of our missions at FLITE is to offer all off-campus students access to the high-quality research materials available through the library. FLITE's subscription databases are available to all current Ferris students, faculty, and staff, including off-campus students. Our Distance Education web site should help you with any questions you may have about reaching FLITE from wherever you are. Be sure to study it carefully and return to it often. If you experience problems logging on, please call (231) 591-2669 or (800) 4-FERRIS (ext. 2669).
Getting the Article
Once you've found citations relevant to the topic you're working with and you need to get a copy of the articles, you'll need to verify whether FLITE owns the particular journal in which each article was published. Many databases now have a link called "Find It", which gives you the range of options available to find the material. If the full text of the article is available, you will be able to find the article by clicking on the link.
Sometimes the Find It button will provide a link to the Online Catalog. This indicates that the journal is found in FLITE's print collection. If you are off-campus and can't come to FLITE, simply order the article through Interlibrary Loan.
Interlibrary Loan
If the only message you see is "Request document via Interlibrary Loan", you will need to order the article.
Interlibrary Loan is a service provided by FLITE to request articles and books that FLITE does not own. Most often this service is used when searching for articles in FLITE databases, and you are directed through the "Find It" button to request the item. The first time you use this service, you will need to register with ILLiad, our Inter-Library Loan service. Click on the words "First Time Users" to register. You will complete a form, creating a username and password which will be used for future requests. Article requests are emailed to you in 5-10 business days (ferris email preferred), and books will be mailed to you if you are an off-campus student. On-campus students may pick up books at the Checkout Desk. If you are off-campus, you may be able to request interlibrary loan material through your own public library using MeLCat.
To look up whether FLITE owns a particular journal, use the Journals tab or Find-Journals to search for the journal title. Remember to use the journal title not the article title for your search.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of presenting another's work or ideas as your own. Plagiarism is often unintentional, but it occurs whenever you use someone else's ideas or words without giving them credit. It can be obvious - purchasing a term paper or turning in a project done by someone else. It can be putting other's ideas into your own words. It can be cutting and pasting text from a web site. A simple rule: Do not copy text from Web pages or other sources without identifying and giving credit to the original author.
Here are some ways to avoid plagiarism, taken from PILOT, the FLITE Information Literacy Online Tutorial.
To avoid Plagiarism:
- Take clear, accurate notes about where you found specific ideas
- Write down the complete citation information for each item you use
- Use quotation marks when directly stating another person's words
- Always credit original authors for their information and ideas
For more information about Plagiarism, please explore the Plagiarism web page provided by the Ferris State University Writing Center.
Citing Sources and RefWorks
Whenever you are quoting or using information from a source, you must credit or cite that source. Failure to do so is plagiarism which can lead to expulsion from the University.
To learn more about citations, check out this FLITE Citations page.
Print out the FLITE APA Citation Guide and use it to properly format your citations.
RefWorks: A wonderful resource subscribed to by the library. You can create an account and format your citations in a fraction of the time it takes to format citations without this great tool.
RefWorks Tutorial: Need help using RefWorks? Check out this extensive tutorial that can assist you with using RefWorks. Don't miss the A-Z database exporting guide that will show you how to use all of the FLITE databases with RefWorks.
Contact: Alison (Ali) Konieczny / Email / Phone: 231-591-3696 / Office: FLITE 315
Don't forget, you are welcome to come to the Oval Information Desk and ask for help any time. You can also call us 231-591-3602 or chat with us.
Last update: November 3, 2008