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Writing Center
The Writing Center offers assistance with all stages of writing process. The center is located on the 2nd floor of the Undergraduate Library.
For an in-person or online appointment, use the website or call (313) 577-2544.
- Getting Help with Writing GuideThis guide from the Writing Center and the Libraries has resources to support you through the writing process, from finding a topic, writing your paper, and creating your bibliography.
The Library Homepage
- Quick Guide to the Library Homepage [Handout]A guide to the resources and services available through the Wayne State University Library System homepage.
Welcome
This guide is designed to help you learn about the libraries and the resources that will be useful for writing your papers for ENG 1020.
Finding a Topic
These library databases contain reliable content and are arranged by topics. They are useful for locating issues that are of concern to the public or the government, or may be of interest as a research topic.
- CQ Researcher This link opens in a new windowSelect the CQ Research button, then select Hot Topics or browse through the Pro/Con list to locate reports on current social issues and suggested resources for research.
- Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new windowWhen you get to Opposing Viewpoints, click on Browse Issues to locate a variety of important social issues. Select one to find essays, popular and scholarly articles, videos, images and more.
- Points of View Reference Center This link opens in a new windowContaining resources that present multiple sides of an issue, this database provides rich content that can help students assess and develop persuasive arguments and essays, better understand controversial issues and develop analytical thinking skills.
Summon
Use Summon to locate books, articles, and more available through the Wayne State library system. The link to Summon is available from the library home page, upper right.
Also see this Summon video tutorial.
Strategic Searching in Library Databases for Articles
- Business Source Complete This link opens in a new windowWith more than 1,200 journals, Business Source Complete is THE database for journal articles from all disciplines of business. Also includes additional full text content including financial data, books, conference proceedings, case studies, industry reports, market research reports, country reports, company profiles, SWOT analyses and more.
- Communication and Mass Media Complete This link opens in a new windowThis database lets you search for scholarly articles and other published materials in communication, mass media, journalism, and other closely-related fields of study.
- PsycINFO This link opens in a new windowContains citations and summaries of journal articles, book chapters, books, and technical reports in the field of psychology and psychological aspects of related disciplines including medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, anthropology, business, and law.
- PubMed@Wayne This link opens in a new windowPubMed is a project developed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the National Library of Medicine (NLM). It is the premier database for the health sciences and medical fields, with citations for over 9 million articles.
Newspapers
- NewspapersThe library has over 30 newspaper databases available, including historical and current access to publications like the Detroit Free Press, New York Times and Wall Street Journal.
- Detroit Free Press (1999-Present) This link opens in a new windowFull text of the Detroit Free Press.
- Detroit Free Press Backfile (1923-1999) This link opens in a new windowProQuest Historical Newspapers: Detroit Free Press offers full page and article images with searchable full text. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue.
- Detroit Free Press Historical Full-Text (1831-1922) This link opens in a new windowProQuest Historical Newspapers: Detroit Free Press offers full page and article images with searchable full text. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue.
MLA Citation Help
Meeting with a librarian
Types of Information Sources
Understanding Scholarship as Conversation
Types of articles
Scholarly journals do not only publish empirical research articles. The scholarship may also be presented as theoretical analysis or humanities research. Other types of articles include literature reviews, meta-analysis, guest articles, book reviews, and perspective, editorials and commentary. It is important that you are able to distinguish among these different types of articles, which each serve a purpose in communication among scholars and professionals.
Following are examples of these different types of articles.
- Empirical Research ArticleThis is an empirical research article, detailing a mixed methods research study using both qualitative and quantitative methods. An empirical research article usually has the following sections: abstract, introduction and literature review, methodology, results, conclusion and references.
- Theoretical AnalysisThis type of article is written to contribute to the theoretical foundations of a field of study. The author will draw upon existing research to form a new theory or explore theories in new ways.
- Humanities ResearchIn the Humanities, scholars are not conducting research experiments on participants but rather are making logical arguments based on the evidence they have, which often comes from texts, primary sources and other types of evidence to support their perspective and conclusions.
- PerspectivePerspective articles are scholarly reviews of fundamental concepts, prevalent ideas or the current state in a field. A Perspective article is usually written in essay form and presents a personal analysis or critique. [Adapted from 6 Article types that journals publish: A guide for early career researchers]
- Systematic Literature ReviewA literature review is a critical and in-depth evaluation of an area of research. A systematic literature review adds a level of analysis by identifying studies that relate to or answer specific questions. Systematic reviews are the foundation of evidence based approaches.
- Book ReviewScholarly peer-reviewed journals may include reviews of academic books, usually written by an expert or scholar in that field. You can usually find the credentials of the book review author at the end of the review.
- EditorialEditorials are opinion pieces that can appear in scholarly journals. They may be written by the editor, or an invited scholar or expert in the field. Editorials are usually not included in the peer-review process for the journal.