FAQs

Sometimes, finding a resource in the library using a citation can be tricky. Omitting a word in the citation title or misspelling an author's name can result in no search results when you enter them into the library search box. But don't give up! Here are some search strategies you can use to dig up that article:

The Library Search Box

How Do I Find a Specific Article, Book, or Publication
Use this guide to get started using the library search box to find your article. It provides tips on searching by article title, journal name and more.

Quotations
Use quotation marks around the title when you enter it into the library search box. This indicates that you want to search for a specific phrase.

Full text
Deselect the Full Text box located under the library search box. The article may exist, just not in full text in our library. You can use the Request a Document link and we will try to get them for you.

Keywords
Pull out a few keywords from the title to expand your search. This is useful if you suspect there is an error in the title. For example, if you're to find the article Are women nursing academics represented in university leadership positions? but your citation title is missing the term nursing (and thus not found in our databases):

Use the Advanced search link and enter:

Women AND academics AND leadership

Select Title -TI in the drop-down box.

Google Scholar

While Google Scholar has limited search features, it can excel at locating an academic article whose citation you suspect is incorrect. Access Google Scholar from our library (you can also use the Research Databases icon to get the link). Using the library link will provide you with a link to the article if it is in our library. Enter the article title in the search box and scroll through the results.

Still not finding the article?

Consider the source.

• Older seminal works may not be available online. Use the Request a Document service to see if we can get a copy of an older publication.
• Generative artificial intelligence tools are notorious for fabricating references. GenAI has been programmed to respond, not be accurate. Every citation it generates should be verified in the library. If you cannot find the article, book, report, etc. in the library, and the citation was generated by AI, it is highly likely the citation was fabricated. Check out our How to Get Started with Artificial Intelligence guide for more information about the limitations, benefits, and ethics surrounding these tools.