Research is an important component of academic study. This document provides an overview to library research, focusing on strategies and techniques for effective use of online research tools as well as overviewing of the resources and services available to Spring Arbor University students, staff and faculty. For additional information, consult the library website, http://www.arbor.edu/whitelibrary.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The word research is derived from the French word rechercher, which means to seek, to search, to explore. According to William Irmscher the "main purpose of ... undergraduate research ... [is] to learn how to find materials, how to evaluate them, and finally how to integrate them into a new set of relationships"[The Holt Guide to English, pp. 304-305]. In other words, the research process enables writers to explore topics from a broader perspective and provides them with new ideas and approaches with which they will interact before forming their own conclusions.

George Brosi asserts that "the reason that so much is known today about the world and the universe is that scholars have built upon the work of those who have asked and answered questions in the past. Instead of starting the process of inquiry over and over again, scholars have first learned what others have learned and then tried to delve even deeper into the questions which perplex them. Thus scholarship is a cumulative process."[The Community of Scholars: http://www.english.eku.edu/services/comp102/hand2.htm]

Many students when they begin a research project are quick to jump to conclusions. They undermine both the benefits and the product of the research process. Research is not about finding books and articles that will support a particular viewpoint while quickly dismissing materials that contain opposing views. The best research is done when the writer sets aside preconceptions and looks at a variety of perspectives, interacts with what others have written, and comes to reasonable conclusions only after weighing the evidence. Quality research takes time and usually includes the following steps:

• Choose a Specific, Narrowly Defined Topic

The writer needs to focus research efforts on a specific topic. Background reading of encyclopedias and other library resources will enable the researcher to get a general understanding of the topic. This will enable the researcher then to focus on an area of interest that can be developed thoroughly within the limits of the assignment.

• Analyze the Underlying Concepts

Once the topic is chosen (or assigned), it needs to be analyzed. In other words, it needs to be broken down into various aspects or parts for further research and study. One way to help analyze the topic is to draft a number of specific questions that you would like to answer through the research.

• Determine Subject Headings and Index Terms

These aspects or parts then have to be translated into the appropriate terms that are used for storing and retrieving documents in library systems. The initial names for these aspects may not necessarily be the best terms for retrieving information from a catalog or index. For instance, the concept may be "emergency medical technicians," but the actual term used for storing and retrieving information on the concept may be "paramedics." Searchers can determine the appropriate subjects to use in their searches by consulting subject-specific thesauri or the Library of Congress Subject Headings.

• Search Catalogs and Indexes

After determining what the best term or terms are for each concept, begin searching the catalogs and appropriate indexes for information on your topic. Remember--avoid the temptation of looking for information that only supports your anticipated conclusions. Set aside any preconceived conclusions, and take an honest look at what information is available. You will find much more information.

• Gather Materials

Begin to gather the materials. Some may need to be found in other libraries or obtained through interlibrary loan. Check their bibliographies to find additional works that may be of value for your research.

• Evaluate Materials

Not all sources of information were created equal. Be critical. Do not use inferior materials, even when they directly support your work. Choose only the best resources for your research.

• Develop the Main Idea(s) and Supporting Details

After you have chosen the best resources for your work, develop the main idea(s) you want to express in your paper and outline the details you will use to support your main ideas. These could be the answers to the questions you may have drafted earlier.

• Complete the First Draft

Write a complete draft of the paper. At this point do not worry about grammar, spelling, etc. Concentrate on writing strong paragraphs for each of the main ideas.

• Document the Resources Used

Cite all direct quotations, paraphrases, summaries, unique phrases or significant words from the resources you have used.

• Revise and Proof Work

After having put aside your draft for a few days, read it over as if someone else had written it. Again, be critical. Try to read it from your intended audience’s perspective. Correct all mechanical problems, develop smooth transitions between your paragraphs, and proofread the entire manuscript a few times.

Research is rarely a linear process. Be prepared to loop back to previous steps. Analysis is the critical step.You will find few pieces of information that will cover your entire topic. What you will need to do is find information that is relevant to each aspect or part of your topic. It is up to you, then, to draw it all together from your own perspective.

Research usually requires work in libraries. Internet resources will not be sufficient for many of the projects you will be assigned. The library information below will help you understand how libraries are organized, will help you to search more precisely, and will guide you in evaluating materials.

There are three major types of libraries: special, public, and academic. Special library is an umbrella term used for libraries at a hospital, business, law office, or any other specialized locale. These libraries are typically not accessible to the general public; they exist solely to serve their specific clientele. Resources of a special library can often be accessed by other libraries through cooperative agreements, such as an interlibrary loan system. These libraries can be very helpful for your research.

You are probably familiar with the public library in your town. Public libraries serve the general population, and their collections are built accordingly. You cannot expect a public library to have the kinds of specialized materials you may need for some of your research. However, you should still check your local library to see what materials it does have.

The academic library is connected with a college or university. They are designed to support the kind of research that you will be doing throughout your coursework at SAU. It is most effective and efficient to do the bulk of your research at an academic library.

What is the Dewey Decimal Classification System?

A man named Melvil Dewey developed the Dewey Decimal Classification System in 1876. He thought that it would help libraries organize their books better if each book was given a number according to what it was about. That way, all books with the same subject would be close to each other on the shelf. That's what "classification" means.

How is it organized?

The word "decimal" refers to numbers that are based on 10 (ten). You will see that there are 10 basic categories in the Dewey Decimal system, and each of those categories is further split into 10 categories, and so on.

How can I find things?

Each one of the 10 major categories in the Dewey Decimal system covers a different subject. For example, the 300 category includes everything about the Social Sciences, such as Government or Law. The 800 category includes everything about Literature. Once you get used to how things are organized, you'll find it very easy to locate the information you're looking for.

Why is the Dewey system still used?

Melvil Dewey thought up this system just for organizing books, because there wasn't much else in libraries back in 1876. However, the Dewey Decimal system is also very good for organizing other kinds of information, even websites.

The Library of Congress Classification System (LCC) was developed at the end of the nineteenth century in response to expansion of the Library's collection and plans to move it into a new and larger building. Thomas Jefferson's initial classification scheme was found to be inadequate for the detail required by the large research collection. Several librarians, therefore, set to the task of devising a new system by which to organize the holdings of the national library. Letter by letter, the LC system of classification was formed, and is to this day under continual revision. While public and school libraries still utilize the Dewey Decimal system of classification, many academic collections transferred to LCC in the 1960s.

Arranged according to discipline, LCC was designed to reflect the holdings of the Library of Congress; it is not universal in coverage. Each item, according to LCC, is assigned a call number consisting of three divisions: class, subclass, and a final item-specific number. (from http://www.tulane.edu/~html/lc.htm)

There are other systems of classification that you may encounter in your library research, such as the United States Superintendent of Documents (SuDocs) system. In any case, familiarize yourself with the system. Many libraries have maps for each floor that show the layout of how materials are arranged by classification system or systems. If these maps are available, they are usually a handy reference to help you navigate the stacks.

The library catalog is one of the most important tools in any library. Most academic libraries have replaced their card catalog with an online (computer) catalog. The online public access catalog (OPAC) makes it possible to find materials quickly and to print the bibliographic information found.

Online catalogs are usually "user friendly" and give on-screen instructions for using them. Most libraries also provide an instruction sheet near the computer workstation or terminal to help the user get started. Don’t hesitate to ask a librarian to assist you in using the catalog. SAU uses the library catalog system called Innovative. This catalog is web-based and can be searched on any computer with Internet access.

Before searching any kind of electronic catalog or index it is always helpful to understand how the information is formatted and retrieved in the system. For instance, the following is an example of how information is commonly displayed in a library OPAC:

Line 1 assigns authorship of the work. This is the official heading for the author and may differ from the way the author’s name appears on the actual item being described. For example, a book may have Geoffrey Crayon on the title page, but the cataloger places the book under the official name heading Irving, Washington, 1783-1859. If there is more than one author of the work, the other(s) will be listed elsewhere in the record and will also be accessible by doing an author search.

When you find good information on your research topic, do an author search to see if the library has other related works by the same author.

Lines 2-4 describe the title and the statement of responsibility as closely as possible to the way this information appears on the original work. In this particular record "The vulnerable child" is the title. The subtitle directly follows the title: "what really hurts America's children and what we can do about it." And the statement of responsibility "/ Richard Weissbourd" is last.

Be careful. The way title searches are performed in online catalogs vary. Some require an exact continuous string of words starting with the first word of the title. Others will take any string of words as long as no words are missing in between. Still others will allow for keywords in the title to be searched in any order. Make sure you know how the system searches. You could miss some valuable sources by entering in your search strategy incorrectly.

Line 5 describes the publication information in the following order: place of publication, name of publisher, and date of publication (or copyright date when publication date is not provided).

Sometimes it may be useful to search for all materials by the same publisher. Some publishers only publish materials on a specific topic or discipline. You may search for publishers by using a keyword search of the entire record, unless the catalog has a direct search key for publisher (which is more convenient but rare). Some catalogs allow you to limit the results of a search by date or range of dates.

Line 6 is the physical description of the work. In this case the book has 15 pages of introductory materials, followed by 280 pages of text. The length of the book along the spine is 24 cm. This information may not be accessible in some online catalogs even when doing a keyword search.

Line 7 is a series title. This book is number 20 in the series.

Sometimes series are narrow enough in scope to be of help in your research. When this is true, you may want to search for any additional works in the series. Many catalogs allow direct searching by series title. Follow up by doing a keyword search of important words in the series title. (Series information is difficult to control and has been placed in various locations in cataloging records, some of which are inaccessible by a series search.)

Line 8 is a simple note informing the user that the work has an index. Notes vary widely in content and are usually helpful.

Line 9 informs the user that the book has an 11-page bibliography.

If the book is on target for your research, then the bibliography will be important for finding other works on your topic. A photocopy of these pages can be used to aid in the acquisition of the titles. Cross out in pencil those works that are not related to your topic. See if the library has those titles that remain. Use the list also to keep track of those items you may need to order through SAU’s interlibrary loan service.

Lines 10-13 list the subject headings that have been assigned to this work. These are controlled, standardized headings.

Subject searching of these headings is the most precise way to find other information on your topic. When doing a subject search, the words (usually excluding the punctuation) have to be entered exactly as they appear in the heading.

Line 14 is the call number which contains the classification number (usually Dewey or Library of Congress). The call number represents the location of the item in relation to other related items on the shelf.

Browsing the shelves in the same specific location (class) can be very beneficial for finding additional information on your topic. However, remember that the same classification numbers can be found in various locations in a library: the regular circulating collection, reference collection, oversize area, etc. Also browse (if you are permitted) the holding shelves where materials are being sorted before they are returned to their normal place in the collection. The best books are usually either out or on their way back to the stacks. If you have access to the holding shelves browse them. Books are usually out of specific order on these shelves, but it may be well worth the extra work to browse them.

Line 15 tells the user that there is only one copy of this title, provides the barcode identification number, and locates the book in the regstacks area of the library, in this case the main stacks where books can be browsed and checked out.

Subject searching is precise but difficult because the user must translate his or her concepts into an appropriate form for online searching. The best way to search by subject is to determine in advance which headings are valid for the catalog. Users need to consult the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), the multi-volume set used by cataloging librarians to assign subject headings. These are typically placed next to clusters of workstations used to access the catalog. Here is an example of a subject heading entry from the LCSH:

Looking up Employee motivation, you will find several entries. The UF stands for "used for" and simply lists the headings that were not chosen, so ignore the UF headings; they are not valid. The second abbreviation is BT, which stands for "Broader term." These are all valid subject headings which are wider in scope than the heading they are under. They are good sources for broad, background research. The BT terms for Employee motivation are Motivation (Psychology), Personnel management and Psychology, Industrial. These are valid headings you may use to find additional materials.

The third abbreviation under Employee motivation is RT, which stands for "Related term" and will suggest valid subject headings in some sense related to the original heading. Only one related term is given here, Goal setting in personnel management. The last abbreviation is NT, which stands for "Narrower term;" here are given Employee competitive behavior and Incentives in industry. If you do not have access to the LCSH, you can determine subject headings by examining item records from library catalogs and article databases. Look for the subject heading designations, often found at the end of the record or, in the case of the SAU Library Catalog, the subject headings are found under the "Find Similar Items" tab.

Keyword searching, rather than searching only the area of the assigned subject headings, will search the entire record for a match. This is a powerful way to search a catalog, but it often generates a lot of records that do not relate to your topic. There are ways in which the researcher can refine a keyword search to improve its precision. Combinations of terms are used along with a variety of linking words to express the relationships the terms should have with one another. The three main linking words (called Boolean operators) are AND, OR and NOT. Most Library Catalogs and Article Databases allow for Boolean searching.

These can be expressed in diagrams as follows:

Each circle represents the set of records that matches the term being searched. The shaded area represents the set of records that has all three terms. To generate this result the words are linked with AND as follows: Family AND violence AND Alcohol. This operation limits the number of records that have to be read while improving the chances that the records that are read are closer to the topic being researched.

Each circle again represents the set of records that matches the term being searched. The shaded areas represent the set of records that has any one, two, or all three terms. To generate this result the words are linked with OR as follows: family OR domestic OR home. This operation increases the number of records that have to be read. Doing this insures that information is not missed. Usually related word or synonyms are used in this kind of search.

The shaded areas represent the set of records that has the word family intersecting with either the word violence or alcohol or both. To generate this result the words are linked as follows: Family AND (Violence or Alcohol). Note the parentheses in this case. The order of operations is critical. Violence must be linked with alcohol first and the result is then combined with Family. Some online systems operate from left to right. Others work by order of operation. To avoid problems use parentheses. Many systems allow them, some up to eight layers.

The shaded area represents the set of records that has the word family intersecting with violence but excludes the word alcohol. To generate this result the words are linked as follows: Family AND Violence NOT Alcohol. No parentheses are needed in this case. Be especially careful of the NOT operator; you may unintentionally exclude important information if it is miss-applied.

Truncation and wildcards are also supported by some systems. For instance, instead of having to link the related terms library, libraries, librarian, librarians, and librarianship using the OR operator, you can truncate a single search term with a special character to generate the same result.

Librar$ will produce a set that includes all records with the following words:

Librar y

Librar ies

Librar ian

Librar ians

Librar ianship

The wildcard is an imbedded symbol that replaces only one character space. For instance, the term wom?n will produce a set that includes all records with the word woman or women.

Common truncation marks for systems include: $, *, +, and ?. Consult the help section of the library catalog or article database you are searching for information on how truncation works with that specific system as it varies.

Searching the SAU Library Catalog Innovative from a Remote Site

Innovative is the online library catalog for Spring Arbor University. All library materials, EXCEPT journals, are listed here. This includes all types of books, CDs, videotapes, audiotapes, and a variety of other materials available for checkout.

ACCESS: Innovative is available through the World Wide Web at http://dromedary.arbor.edu/#.The SAU Library homepage (http://www.arbor.edu/whitelibrary/) also has a link to the catalog. No password or log-in is required to search the library catalog. No password or log-in is required.

MY ACCOUNT: Users can establish a library account, which allows them to renew books online. Off-campus students can also request materials through their account. These items are pulled and sent to the student's home address at no charge. Setting up an account is fairly simple and is outlined in this handout.

SEARCHING: To search in Innovative, start at the main search screen (http://dromedary.arbor.edu/#):

Enter terms - As you'll see, the system defaults to keyword searching. Enter a term or phrase related to your topic and then select search. A list of records/hits will appear. You can also search by author, title, or subject. There are tabs at the top of the screen indicating the type of search:

Keyword-Looks for the words or phrases anywhere in the record.
Author-Looks for terms only in the author field. Search by last name first (i.e., Kohn, Alfie).
Title-Looks for terms only in the title field.
Subject-Looks for terms only in the subject field. You must use the correct subject term.
Call #-Looks for the specific Call # (Dewey number assigned to material).
Reserves-Looks for materials on reserve by Course or Professor.

ADVANCED SEARCHING: If you have trouble finding what you need, try some of these advanced search techniques. These help you get more appropriate results. Some narrow (get fewer items) and some expand (get more items) your search. These techniques can be used in combination. You'll find the advanced search option on the right hand side of the page.

Boolean Terms Use AND, OR or NOT to link terms together to get a better search.

AND locates records that have all the terms. Education and Whole Language finds records about whole language in education.

OR locates records that have any of the terms. Whole Language or Phonics finds records about whole language or phonics instruction methods.

NOT locates records that have some terms, but not others. Reading not Phonics finds records about reading methods other than phonics.

Boolean operators can be used in two ways. You can select the AND, OR, or AND NOT options between the Term 1, 2, and 3 boxes. The default is AND. This lets you link terms in different indexes. You can also use AND, OR or NOT within a term box. This lets you link terms within an index. You must do a phrase search for the second method to work correctly.

Proximity Operators Use BEFORE, NEAR or ADJACENT to control term proximity.

BEFORE (or bef) locates one term in front of another. Group before Insurance finds records about group insurance.

NEAR locates one term close to another. Internet near Filter finds records more likely to be about Internet filters than if the terms where anywhere in the record.

ADJACENT (or adj) locates one term on either side of another. Tobacco adj Reform finds records about reform of the tobacco industry or tobacco industry reform.

You must do a word list search for proximity operators to work correctly.

SEARCHING TIPS: If you have trouble locating materials, make sure you are searching with the right terms. Please keep in mind that books are catalogued at a general level. A book about Toni Morrison and Alice Walker has the subjects American Literature, Afro-American authors or American Literature, Women authors. If you don't find anything using a specific term, try using more general terms. If you use general terms, then you can check in the indexes and tables of contents in the looks to see if they have a chapter or a section on your more specific topic.

You also need to make sure you are using the right type of search (phrase or word list) if you have used Boolean operators within a term box or used proximity operators.

LOOKING AT RESULTS: Once you've completed your search, a set of results will appear on the search screen:

The initial view lists the author, title, publication information, and call number. Click on the title to view the full record.

The full record provides all available information including subject headings . Click Next Record or Previous Record to view more records.

PRINTING: Both brief and full records can be printed. To print the records on the screen, click the Print icon in the browser button bar.

CHECKING OUT MATERIALS: You may check out up to 20 items. Please contact Lois Hunt at lhunt@arbor.edu or call the circulation desk at (800) 968-9103, ext. 1742 or 1-517-750-6742 to request items. Please keep in mind some items may already be checked out. You can have a hold placed on checked out material so it will be held for you when it is returned. Also, if you are searching from off-campus, you can request items using your "My Account" (see note above about setting up a library account). Items will automatically be pulled from the library collection and sent to your home address.

Occasionally you may not be able to locate any books on your topic in the library you are working in, even though you have tried both subject and keyword searching in the online catalog. Amazon (www.amazon.com) and other online bookstores (e.g., www.buy.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, and www.borders.com) also provide a wealth of information on books.

Many useful books not currently in print or not available through Spring Arbor University may be located through the use of the World Cat database through First Search. The SAU library can interlibrary loan these books for you. See the information below on interlibrary loan and First Search. Check with a Spring Arbor University librarian in cases where you cannot locate any books on your topic.

Using MELCat (Michigan Electronic Library)

Along with many other Michigan libraries, Spring Arbor University participates in MELCat (Michigan Electronic Library Catalog). Through this cooperative system, Spring Arbor users have access to books, DVDs, CDs and other resources from libraries across the state of Michigan. You'll find a link to MELCat on the main library website, http://www.arbor.edu/whitelibrary. Search MELCat as you would the Spring Arbor Library Catalog. When you locate materials of interest, follow the instructions for requesting the item. You must have a library account to request materials through MELCat. Items requested are sent to the SAU White Library and then are forwarded to you by mail. MELCat is similar to Interlibrary Loan, but different in that users make the request and it only encompasses Michigan libraries. MELCat is part of MEL, which provides other services to Michigan residents. For more information about MEL and MELCat, consult this brochure.

There are hundreds of specialized subject indexes that will provide access to journal and other periodical literature. Each aspect of your topic may require a search in a different index. These online indexes are available via the Internet through subscriptions. SAU subscribes to several different indexes. To see a complete listing, visit the "Article Databases" section of the library website.

You must match the aspect or part of your topic with the most appropriate available indexes. If you do not know which indexes to use, do not hesitate to ask a local librarian where you are doing the research or call a Spring Arbor University librarian.

• Check the Thesaurus

Some of the best indexes have controlled vocabulary subject access. A list of controlled vocabulary terms is typically called a thesaurus. These can be found in the reference section of the library or they may be located near workstations or index tables. Finding the correct terms saves time. Online databases sometimes provide access to an online thesaurus of subject terms.

• Search the Index

Searching an electronic index is similar to searching an online catalog (which has already been discussed above). Many of the same search options are available: subject, keyword, author, title, etc. Searching paper indexes can be time-consuming, but they can point to some important sources. Remember that multiple volumes must be consulted since they are compiled periodically. Start from the most recent issues and work backwards, unless you are looking for something that relates to a specific time period.

• Print or Photocopy the Citations

It is very important to get all the bibliographic information for each journal article you will use for your paper. Printing, photocopying or emailing is recommended since you will need complete information when compiling your bibliography.

• Check the Holdings List for Availability

All libraries use a serials holdings list which lists all the periodicals owned by that library. Most academic libraries now include the titles of the periodicals they own in the online library catalog; some libraries also have a printed list of periodicals. In either case, the listing will indicate what years/volumes the library has, what format (paper, microfiche or microfilm) the journal is in, and where the journal is located in the library. To see if Spring Arbor's White Library subscribes to a specific journal, search online SAU Journal List, accessible from the library website.

• Photocopy or Interlibrary Loan the Articles

Acquire copies of the journal articles as quickly as possible. Many journal articles will have bibliographies that may point to other information of value to your research. Some articles will be available online full-text, while others will need to be requested through Interlibrary Loan. To initiate an Interlibrary Loan request, contact the SAU Interlibrary Department. Kami Moyer, ILL Technician, can be reached by email at kmoyer@arbor.edu or by phone at 1-800-968-9103, ext. 1439.

Professors often ask you to use "scholarly" articles or journals for an assignment. It isn't always easy to know what that is. There are distinct characteristics for each type of magazine.

First, is it a magazine? A journal? A periodical? A serial? These all mean that it is a source that is published periodically or, another way to say it, serially. Those called magazines are usually popular while those called journals are usually scholarly.

One way to tell if an article is popular or scholarly is how you find it. Most of the articles listed in academic indexes, such as Social Science Index, ERIC or Psychological Abstracts are scholarly. Articles from Business Index and Academic Index can be scholarly or popular, while articles from Reader's Guide are popular. Magazines available at a newsstand are generally popular too.

Another way to tell if a source is a scholarly journal or a popular magazine is by looking at the magazine itself. The content of an article is also indicative of the type of magazine it is.

Some examples are:

SCHOLARLY JOURNAL:

POPULAR MAGAZINE:

Scholarly and popular magazines are not the only types available either. Other types of magazines include newspapers, trade journals and opinion journals. Each type has a specific audience and use. The following chart provides examples of the various types of magazines, what audience they are aimed at and their uses.

The Internet is a tremendous collection of information that is growing rapidly. Unfortunately, few of the sources are good resources for research. Anyone can and does put information online and no one controls the quality. Information can come from companies, communities, organizations, educational institutions and individual people. Data on one web page can be accurate and reliable, while the data on another can be inaccurate, unreliable or even deliberately false. As you use the Internet for research, you must be prepared to be a skilled consumer and critically analyze the information you find.

Is the information you are looking for actually on the Internet? For reasons of copyright or lack of demand, many research quality sources will not be available or will be available through purchase only. Some reasons for information being unavailable are:

Keep these guidelines in mind when deciding what to look for on the Internet.

In traditional print resources, accuracy, authority, objectivity, currency and coverage are important criteria used to judge the quality of a source. These criteria apply to Internet resources as well.

Quality materials on the Internet can be evaluated by these criteria. If you are unable to apply any of these criteria to a source, it is not good enough quality to use.

One way to filter information you find on the Internet is to search using Web search engines that evaluate sources. All Web search engines search their own internal database of Web sources, NOT the entire Internet. Some "review" sites. Depending on the search engine, you can opt to search in a smaller database of reviewed sites or the entire database if it is only of reviewed sites.

Applying the above criteria is impacted by the various types of web pages available. Each type has a particular point, which can help you determine how to evaluate the information available at a site.

Some Web pages do not fit these categories, but most do. Understanding the purpose of the Web page is half the battle in analyzing the quality of the content. When you know the reason information has been provided, you can more easily determine whether it is deceptive, average or excellent information.

Once you have found information online and are ready to evaluate it, there are some circumstances that impact your evaluation and use that are unique to the online world. These are issues you should keep in mind as you decide what to use.

Citing Internet resources requires some special attention. To learn about how to document sources from the web, visit the SAU Library website section on citing.

Also, for help on how to cite Internet information using the APA format consult the official APA page at http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html

And, for help on how to cite Internet information using the MLA format consult the official MLA page Documenting Sources from the World Wide Web.

Final Thoughts

There is a lot more to learn about using library resources and services. This document provides you with a start. Actually using the tools is probably the best way to learn. As you embark on your journey, remember there are Librarians available to help you along the way. Visit the Ask-A-Librarian section of the library website for information on how to contact the SAU Librarians.

Also, to learn more about all the SAU White Library Resources and Services, visit the library website.