Finding Sources

How to find books, videos and articles? 

1. Click on the Holman Library One Search below and Combine Search Words relating to your topic, such as: mass incarceration racism justice
2. In the Left-Hand Column of the search results page, Filter your search by...

• Peer-reviewed Journals...to give you scholarly analysis or scientific research on a very specific area of your topic
• Books / Book Chapters... to give you an in-depth analysis of the complexity of your large topic
• Newspapers...to give you facts or up-to-date info on your topic
• Audio Visual... to provide first-hand accounts of participants or to view the topic from a documentary angle

Searching Online

You can also use Google Scholar or Google Books to find sources:

If you can't find the full text of an article or book (through library databases or through Google Scholar or on the web), you can request it through Interlibrary Loan.  Through this service, you can usually get copies of articles in 3-4 business days and books in 8-10 days.
CLICK:

Example Searches

Look at the the example searches listed below to learn how to better search Holman Library's "One Search" catalog

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1. First, you will likely need to perform several searches with different search words

Examples

• search #1 = online dating
• search #2 = internet dating
• search #3 = dating websites
• search #4 = online dating culture
• search #5 = online dating norms
• search #6 = "internet daters" attitudes

2.  Next, filter by "Reference Entries to give you basic background about your topic.
3. Then filter by different source types - Peer-reviewed, Books and Audio Visual can be helpful types of sources
4. Results may include online sources AND hardcopy sources available on library shelves

Evaluating Sources

Use the Evaluation Criteria Below to Evaluate the Quality of Your Source.

• If your source does not satisfy these criteria, you may want to find a different, more reliable source

Currency

• Does the source list a publication or “last updated” date? Where?
• How current must information for your topic be? Why?
• Is older, historical info important for your topic? Why?

Reliability

• Where do the source’s facts or info come from? How can you tell?
• Does your source take the time to go through a review or editing process before it is published?  How do you know?

Authority

• What are the author’s or organization’s qualifications, credentials, expertise, affiliations, experience?
• Is the author an authoritative person or organization? What makes the author “authoritative” for your topic?

Purpose

• Why is this info being published? To inform, teach, sell, entertain, persuade, other? How did you determine this?
• Does the publisher/sponsor have biases?  How did you determine this? Is bias acceptable for your topic?

Using NoodleTools to Cite

Log in or create your free student account with NoodleTools using the link below and easily create and store citations.

Learning More About Citations

Vide the video and information below to learn more about why citing is so important!

To find video segments in the "Contents" area: Click the carrot or the arrow at the bottom of the video player
Example:

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1. Place in-text citations in the body of the paper to acknowledge the source of your information.  This is meant to be a shortened version of the full citation that appears on the final page of your paper.
2. Place full citations for all your sources on the last page entitled References or Works Cited (different citation styles require different titles).  Full citations are meant to provide readers with enough information so that they can locate the source themselves.
3. APA or MLA are citation styles.  Each has different guidelines for how source information (author, title, year...etc.) should be formatted and punctuated for both in-text citations and for the References or Works Cited pages

Librarians are always available to help you!

View the video below to learn more about how the librarians can help you

Contact us:

In Person
Find a librarian on staff at the information desk during the library's open hours. This is the best way to contact us if you are on campus, need immediate assistance or have a lengthy or complicated question. 

By Chat / Instant Message
Chat with a librarian through the library's chat /instant messaging service. We participate in a program where librarians from all over the country can answer questions, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!

By Email
Email a reference librarian with a reference question at librarian@greenriver.edu. This is an alternative to chat IM if you want help from a Green River Community College librarian. Emails will be answered Monday through Friday during normal business hours.