Databases

What are Databases?

Think about your local newspaper -- are you able to read it for free? Maybe if you come across a copy in a coffee shop, but usually, no. People must subscribe and pay a fee in order to read their local newspaper in print and online. It is the same for magazines and scholarly journals as well. Databases are platforms that gather a variety of sources together online so you can search through them all at once. The library pays a subscription fee for these databases so you as a Ventura College student may access them at no cost to you.

If you take a look at our Databases A-Z page Links to an external site., you will see that we have more than sixty different databases. We have so many because each database contains different sources and covers different topics. 

For example, take a look at the description for ProQuest Research Library Links to an external site..

ProQuest Research Library accesses more than 5,000 titles, over 3,500 of which are full text, from 1971 to the present. Topics range from business to psychology, from literature to political science, with articles coming from a mix of popular and scholarly sources, as well as magazines and newspapers.

This is a multi-disciplinary database that contains a variety of source types including magazines, newspapers, and scholarly journals. Because its coverage is so broad, it is a good database to use for almost any research topic.

Now, take a look at the description for CINAHL Complete Links to an external site..

This database provides subject and keyword searching capabilities to specialized articles from more than 620 nursing & allied health journals. Evidence-based Care Sheets and health-related pamphlets are also included.

This is a specialized database focused on nursing and allied health articles. If you are in the Nursing program, this is the perfect database to use; however, it will likely not work well for other disciplines and topics.

And finally, take a look at the description for Kanopy Links to an external site..

Find movies, documentaries, foreign films, classic cinema, independent films and educational videos that inspire, enrich and entertain. (Note: Once you arrive on the Kanopy page, look for the red "Get Started" button and then follow the prompts to gain full access to the Kanopy Library.

This is streaming media database that only provides access to videos. Videos may still be helpful for your research, but make sure using a video as a source is acceptable for your assignment.

The video below will show you how to navigate our Databases A-Z page Links to an external site. in order to find the best database for your research.

This page "Databases" by Kaela Casey is  licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License