Locating empirical research:
The UWM Libraries offers several databases for accessing scholarly resources based on empirical research. Some include a coded search limiter for EMPIRICAL-based methodology. See the Search Tips below.
Guide Purpose
This UWM Libraries research guide was created as supplemental material for SWK662: Methods of Social Welfare Research (Professor Yura Lee) (3 cr. U/G.)
Course description: Analyze methods of social welfare research and problems in project design and programming. Characteristics of investigations directed to planning, administrative, practice, and scientific objectives
Evidence Based Literature Sources
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Cochrane LibraryThe Cochrane Library contains several databases, including the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, which is considered the "gold standard in evidence-based health care.
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PubMedPubMed comprises more than 21 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full-text content from PubMed Central and publisher web sites.
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PsycINFO (APA)PsycINFO is the core database for searching academic, research, and practice literature in psychology. Search the database for citations and summaries of psychology literature published in journals, books and dissertations. Also search here for psychological aspects of related fields such as medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, anthropology, business, law and others. It includes over one million citations and summaries. 98% of the materials included here are peer reviewed.
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Social Services AbstractsSocial Services Abstracts provides bibliographic coverage of current research focused on social work, human services and related areas, including social welfare, social policy and community development. The database abstracts and indexes over 1,300+ serials publications and includes abstracts of journal articles and dissertations and citations to book reviews.
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Sociological AbstractsThe Sociological Abstracts database abstracts and indexes the international literature in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. It provides abstracts of journal articles and citations to book reviews drawn from thousands of serials publications, and also provides abstracts of books, book chapters, dissertations, and conference papers.
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ERIC - Educational Resources Information Center (EBSCO)ERIC is the source for information on all aspects of education for all age groups, including counseling, tests, and measurement. ERIC indexes journal articles, books, theses, curriculi, conference papers, standards and guidelines.
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CINAHL Plus with Full TextCINAHL Plus with Full Text provides indexing for over 3,000 journals from the fields of nursing and allied health, with indexing back to 1937. CINAHL Plus with Full Text also contains searchable cited references for more than 1,155 journals and provides full text for hundreds of journals, plus legal cases, clinical innovations, critical paths, drug records, research instruments and clinical trials. PDF backfiles to 1937 are also included.
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GenderWatchGenderWatch is a repository of important historical perspectives on the evolution of the women's movement, men's studies, the transgender community and the changes in gender roles over the years. Publications include scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, regional publications, books and NGO, government and special reports.
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Ethnic NewsWatchEthnic NewsWatch incorporates both current Ethnic NewsWatch and Ethnic NewsWatch: A History, providing a full-text collection of more than 2.5 million articles from over 330 titles, from 1959 to current. Ethnicities include: African American/Caribbean/African; Arab/Middle Eastern; Asian/Pacific Islander; European/Eastern European; Hispanic; Jewish; Native People.
Identifying Empirical Studies
Advanced Search Tips for Finding Articles Based on Empirical Research
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PsycINFO (APA)Search Tips: 1) Use Advanced Search; 2) limit Methodology to EMPIRICAL STUDY.
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Social Services AbstractsSearch Tips: 1) Use Advanced Search; 2) enter Empirical search as Subject Heading
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Sociological AbstractsSearch Tips: 1) Switch to ADVANCED SEARCH; 2) include "Empirical Methods" on a search line; 3) Choose “Subject Heading SU" from drop-down menu
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ERIC - Educational Resources Information Center (EBSCO)Search Tips: 1) Switch to ADVANCED SEARCH; 2) Select "Publication Types" (Numerical/Quantitative; Reports-Descriptive; Reports-Evaluative).
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GenderWatchSearch Tips: GenderWatch does not have preset filter for "empirical" literature but you can add a keyword to trigger relevant literature.
See the "Characteristics of Empirical Research" box elsewhere on this page. -
Ethnic NewsWatchSearch Tips: Ethic NewsWatch does not have preset filter for "empirical" literature but you can add a keyword to trigger relevant literature.
See the "Characteristics of Empirical Research" box elsewhere on this page.
Search Tips
Empirical research requires observation or actual experience that is able to be measured; the resulting empirical evidence documents the observations and can be analyzed quantitatively or qualitatively.
Characteristics to look for in empirically based research:
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Identifies a problem, population, or research question under study
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Methodology is stated
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Alternate course of action may be included
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Defines the group or issue being studied
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May be quantitative or qualitative [check with your course instructor or syllabus, as the course focus may be on just one or the other]
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May include tests or surveys (embedded, as an appendix, or referred to by Proper Name)
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May be reproducible; to be replicated or adapted to a new study
Some databases have a filter or advanced search limiter to focus results on empirical research. See the database descriptions elsewhere on this page for details.
If a filter/limiter is not available, enter keywords to match on appropriate content and/or to look for these terms in the summary abstract or article itself:
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design
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hypothesis
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method
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quantitative
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statistic* (to match on statistic, statistics or statistical)
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[inclusion of] charts, statistical tables or graphs