Database searching - how to - Research - Subject Guides at Ara Institute of Canterbury

What are databases and why you need them

In this video a Yavapai College student explains the benefits of using library databases for research over searching the web. [2.34 minutes]

AI Tools for Research

Find below a range of AI driven search tools to support your academic research. Note these search tools may not find full text articles but you can search for any article title without full text in our Library Search box to see if it is in one of our databases or you can paste the details of any article into Ask Live and a librarian can also check for its availability for you.

ChatPDF
An AI tool that can help researchers to understand PDF files. It can automatically extract text from PDFs, translate languages, and answer questions about the content.
Consensus : Evidence-based answers faster
Consensus is a search engine that uses AI to find insights in research papers
Elicit : the AI research assistant
Elicit can find relevant papers without perfect keyword match, summarize takeaways from the paper specific to your question, and extract key information from the papers. Requires you to sign up first.
Keenious
Keenious is an academic search engine that recommends relevant research papers by analyzing your document using artificial intelligence algorithms. It uses Open Alex (as does Semantic Scholar) which is open source. You can upload an abstract of a useful article or your assignment and get it to find supporting articles.

The free version gives you one page of results for each search. Add Keenious as a sidebar in Microsoft Word (Add-Ins / Get Add ins) to get relevant research without breaking your workflow.
Research Rabbit
an AI tool that helps researchers to manage their research. It can track citations, create bibliographies, and generate summaries of papers. Research Rabbit can help researchers to stay organized and make better use of their time.
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An AI tool that helps researchers track citations, create bibliographies, and generate summaries of papers. Research Rabbit can help researchers to stay organized and make better use of their time.
Scite Assistant
Scite Assistant is an AI-powered research tool that helps researchers to find, read, and understand scientific literature. It can automatically extract key information from papers, such as the research question, methods, results, and conclusions.
Semantic Scholar
Semantic Scholar provides free, AI-driven search and discovery tools, and open resources for the global research community. Over 200 million academic papers are indexed.

ProQuest Central

Cochrane Library

Cochrane Library User Guide
A comphrehensive guide to searching, understanding Cochrane reviews and MeSH searching.
YouTube - Understanding Cochrane Reviews
This video explains why systematic reviews are important and how they are done. This includes an explanation of how the effects of interventions are compared in order to provide evidence.

Guides To Using Ara Databases

Find an article in a database (EBSCO) [PDF] [Video]
Find a Standard in Standards New Zealand database [PDF]
How to access O'Reilly eBooks [formerly Safari eBooks] [PDF]
How to access Vital Source ebooks [PDF]
Template example for search strategies to use in databases [PDF]
Using Gale Academic OneFile database [PDF]
Using eTV [PDF]
Using Proquest Central database [PDF]
Using Joanna Briggs database [Video]
Using Ovid nursing database [PDF]
Using Pubmed [Video]
Using Pubmed, CINAHL, Proquest & Ovid to find MeSH headings [PDF]
Using Science Direct database [PDF]
Using LinkedIn Learning [PDF]
What is a peer-reviewed article [PDF]
Using Google Scholar and more [PDF]
What are primary and secondary sources [PDF]
Troubleshooting access to databases [PDF]
Clearing your cache in Chrome, Edge, Safari and Firefox [Website]

EBSCO

Database provider EBSCO provides us with eleven databases. These include Art Full Text, Australia/New Zealand Reference Centre, Business Source Complete, CINAHL and more.

YouTube - CINAHL Databases - Basic Searching Tutorial
A help video on using basic search in CINAHL for health students.
YouTube - CINAHL Databases - Advanced Searching Tutorial
A help video on using advanced search in CINAHL for health students.
YouTube - Business Source - Basic Searching on EBSCOhost
YouTube - Business Source - Advanced Searching on EBSCOhost

Science Direct

Student guide for using ScienceDirect

LinkedIn Learning (Formerly Lynda.com)

LinkedIn Learning
LinkedIn Learning is a great online resource for short videos on a variety of skills concerning research.
Using LinkedIn Learning for the first time
How do I use LinkedIn Learning

Joanna Briggs

Introduction to the Joanna Briggs Institute EBP Database
Provides a 6 minute video demonstration on how to search and information on the subject based nodes along with a review of the seven different publication types (including Best Practice Information Sheets, Evidence-Based Recommended Practices and Consumer Information Sheets).

Using Library Search

Using Library Search [PDF] [Video]
Using Library Search to find journal articles [PDF]
How to find an article in my reading list [PDF] [Video]
How to request an item [PDF] [Video]
How to access a Proquest eBook [PDF] [Video]
How to download a Proquest eBook to my own device [PDF]
How to renew items on loan [PDF] [Video]
How to pin items to your favourites using Library search [PDF]

You can see all our Library video tutorials in our blog.

Gale Cengage

Database provider Gale Cengage provides us with twenty databases. These include Academic OneFile, General OneFile, Opposing Viewpoints in Context and Science in Context and more.

Ara Guide to using Gale - Academic OneFile [PDF]
Help finding articles on Academic OneFile.
YouTube - Using Gale' In Context - Topic Pages & Documents
Gale tutorial videos

Oxford University Press Online

Database provider Oxford University Press provides us with three databases. These include Oxford Art Online, Oxford English Dictionary and English Music Online.

eTV

eTV a guide for students

Standards New Zealand

A guide for students on how to use Standards New Zealand

Research: Database searching - how to

Introduction