Finding Sources

Beginning your research with Google or another search engine is an easy way to quickly get an overview on your topic. Even more effective than Google Search is Google Advanced Search , and even better than that for academic resources is Google Scholar.

Google Scholar

Google Scholar is Google’s academic search engine that searches across scholarly literature. It has extensive coverage, retrieving information from academic publishers, professional organizations, university repositories, professional websites, and government websites.

The benefits of searching within Google Scholar are numerous, but a search solely using Google Scholar will be insufficient for your research. Consider the following benefits of Google Scholar and library databases.

Google Scholar benefits Library Databases benefits
  • Find content not available in library databases
  • Find more government resources than available in library databases
  • Find case law instead of or in addition to other content
  • Limit searches to papers written in a specific language (13 options) and display Google tips in a larger variety of languages
  • Show library access links for up to five libraries
  • Find content not available in Google Scholar
  • Limit results to full text content
  • Specify more information fields (subject headings,abstract, author, etc.) where you want your search terms found
  • Limit search results by subject headings suggested on the search results pages
  • Limit results to peer-reviewed, scholarly, or academic journal articles

Like other Google search products, Google Scholar starts with a basic search blank. Because researchers are more likely to need the results of more specific searches, the Advanced Search link is accessed via a down-arrow in the search blank.

Screenshot of a Google Scholar advanced search, searching for "caffeine health" with at least one of the words: coffee, "green tea", or "black tea"

Google Scholar Advanced Search.

Keep in mind that Google is not transparent about the journals or time ranges it indexes, and publishers occasionally request that Google Scholar not index their publications. Non-scholarly and/or non-peer reviewed material may also appear in Google Scholar, so it is best used in conjunction with other search tools. One of the greatest features of Google Scholar is the “Cited by” link found below each search result. If you find one article you like, you can click on the link to find other articles that reference that same work.

Lenore’s Story: Beginning a Search for Relevant Sources

Take a look at this video which discusses tips for Google searches—and their limitations.