Student working on laptop

Databases

Vocabulary

- - database
  - index
  - interdisciplinary

Definitions

An index or database is an electronic collection of records containing either full-text documents (text, video, music), or providing an index to citations or abstracts of articles and chapters in books. Sometimes a UBC eLink may be provided from an index or citation to redirect you to another database that contains the full text. UBC Library provides access to many different databases for a variety of subjects and disciplines taught on both campuses.

Databases can be interdisciplinary (spanning several or many disciplines) or subject-specific (focusing on a particular discipline, such as history, psychology, or literature).

Certain database providers (e.g. EBSCO or ProQuest) may provide access to many different databases. Don’t worry if you open different database links and they look the same as each other. You are actually searching in different databases provided by the same company. You can find the specific database name at the top of the screen.

Use the following video to guide you through finding and choosing the right databases for your subject or topic, then give it a try for yourself.

Video: Finding and Choosing Databases

Link to: Transcript for Finding A Database

Activity:

(Need the worksheet? Finding Sources Advanced Worksheet.docx)

Let’s practice using the library homepage to find databases by subject. Can you find several relevant databases for your class or assignment? List them.
Based on the results above, or your own search, open up two databases side by side. What do you notice is the same for these pages? What is different about them?

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