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Literature Reviews

Find scholarly articles

Look for databases in your discipline to search for scholarly articles

UBC Library Research Guides list article indexes and databases relevant to that subject area (plus other information sources). You may need to use databases from several Guides depending on your research area. For example: political science and women's studies; chemical engineering and environmental studies, etc. See tips for database searching below.

Following citation trails or citation tracking

More information

Citation searching to support your research - University Health Network (Toronto)
This guide provides more information on the principle and history of citation tracking.

Also check the article indexes for your discipline listed in the relevant UBC Library Research Guide. Some include citation information.

How do I search a database for a literature review that someone has written already?

It depends on which database you're using. Some databases include "literature review" as one of the limit options you can set before or after doing your search: your search will retrieve only literature reviews. 

However in most databases, you will have to add a term for "literature review" to your search. You'll soon get to know the terms that your discipline uses for literature reviews, one or more of

  • review article
  • systematic review
  • critical review
  • literature
  • bibliography
  • meta-analysis, meta analysis 
  • re-analysis of data

Tips for database searching

  • Most databases have an online Help feature. Very useful for learning the specifics of searching that database.
  • Keyword searching: Figuring out the best search words is one of the biggest challenges to searchers. It's often best to start with a simple search with the basic concepts and search words or phrases. Look at initial search results for more search terms, subject headings, specific authors and journals that may be useful in modifying your search.
     
  • Controlled vocabulary searching: Most databases will have a thesaurus - a list of terms used in the database to ensure consistency. It can help you identify the words used in that database as well as possible synonyms. Look for a "map to subject heading" checkbox or thesaurus link.
  • Connecting your search terms (Boolean searching)
    • AND is used to narrow or limit results; results will include ALL your search words or phrases. It is used for connecting different concepts.
      Search statement      : chocolate AND health.
    • OR is used to expand results; results will include ANY of your search words or phrases. It is used for connecting synonyms.
      Search statement      : chocolate OR cocoa
    • NOT is used to exclude results; results will exclude specific search words or phrases.
      Search statement: chocolate NOT milk
    • Using parentheses: if your search statement includes more than one connecting term, you must use parentheses to indicate how to complete the search. This is called nesting.
      Search statement: ((chocolate OR cocoa) AND health) NOT milk
    • More on Boolean searching via the social work guide

 

Browser extenstion for UBC Library access

Step 1: Download and install the extension: leanlibrary.com/download

Step 2: Select University of British Columbia

Step 3: Start searching! When off-campus, Library Access will let you know when you are on a website that the library has access to.

Step 4: Login with your UBC CWL (campus wide login)