Research papers

[ExitViaGiftShop]

I'm new to studying and would like to do some further reading / look up research into the subject matter that I am learning about.

How do you find research papers? I've never had to read them before and have no idea of how to find them. Please help!

Are you attached to an academic institution?

If you are at a university you can probably access them online through the library. Have a look for online learning about searching library databases.

Google scholar is a good starting place just put in key words and drill down further if is very specific

https://scholar.google.com/

Is it undergrad or post grad? What broader Subject?

There are lots of online guides and videos to academic research and writing just use Google search and look first ones that come from academia eg ending in .ac.uk

If you are studying with an institution, talk to the subject librarian for your area of research. They will be able to recommend the leading journals. When I was studying the journals were all purchased in hard copy and filed alphabetically so I just used to walk along and see what was available and I go to know which ones I needed. Also, what books are you reading? Look up those authors. Look at the journals being referenced in the text/ bibliography. Has your institution given you access to the online library? If so, you could search using the keywords for your own area eg racism, health, Jane Austen. I suspect all journals are now accessed online so if your institution hasn’t given you access you need to speak to the library. If you are studying on your own then you would need to do a Google search using key words to find the most appropriate journals and subscribe to them yourself.

Depending on the area of your study, if you want to drill into a very specific area it can be helpful to find a good review paper and read the references from that to get an overview. Do you have a supervisor/tutor who could recommend some to you to get you started?

This assumes you have library/online access, of course.

Yes, do searches using Google Scholar not just regular google or whatever search.

If you're attached to a university or college you should have access to fairly decent online resources, although it can vary.

Have a look for your university's LibGuides which usually look something like this ifis.libguides.com/literature_search_best_practice

I'd recommend Sheila Cottrell's Study Skills Handbook as well, every academic library should have a copy or be able to help you access one. If you're studying something like nursing or medicine then there's a long established book, How to Read a Paper but that might be too specific. And while Google Scholar is great as a starting point and mop up point, some universities can be a bit sniffly about its use even now.

I second the suggestion to get in touch with your university library, although subject librarians are having to cover far more topics now than ten or fifteen years ago you should still be able to ask for help. Some universities now call them Research Support librarians.

Good luck!

If the OP is studying in the conventional way (face face or online) all of this would surely have been discussed at the start of the academic year.

Are you perhaps not in the UK, @ExitViaGiftShop?

Yes if you already in a uni then join a study skills session and speak to Subject librarian

It's a diploma through a college. However, I'd also like to know how i can find research papers for personal learning not related to formal study. Thank you.

Go ask your librarian. If you have a college email address this should allow you access to lots of things thru the library like journals. But there may be a lot under Google scholar to get you started ...and check what the references link to and follow through to those

I'm a bit confused, as research papers are peer-reviewed formal academic study sources.
Depending on your subject, maybe you could also access policy documents - there are tonnes of open access ones.
Find out who the key writers are in your area of interest. Hope this helps a little.