Why Use Them?
Research projects often require you to look close up at a body of research produced by scholars in a particular field.
This research is typically collected, codified, and made 
findable in a tool called a subject database.
Every academic discipline has at least one subject database that's considered the disciplinary gold standard -- a reliable, (relatively) comprehensive, and accurate record of the books that scholars are publishing, and the ideas they're debating and discussing in important and influential journals.
Databases are like lenses: they change what you see and how you see it -- and they offer you easy and efficient ways to bring your questions into sharper focus.
Five Top Picks
- APA PsycInfo HARVARD KEY
- Psychiatry Online HARVARD KEY
- Anthro Source HARVARD KEY
- Sociological Abstracts HARVARD KEY
- America: History and Life (North America) HARVARD KEY
Three More We Recommend
JSTOR Harvard Key
Why: This database allows you to search across time-tested, core academic publications in knowledge fields including anthropology, psychology, sociology, and religion -- disciplines which are likely to consider your "taboo-ed" topic in detail.
ACADEMIC SEARCH PREMIER (EBSCOHOST) Harvard Key
Why: The advantages of Academic Search Premier are 1) multidisciplinary; 2) inclusion of very recent content; 3) a mix of scholarly, news, and magazine content.
GOOGLE SCHOLAR
Why: GS searches differently from most library databases, including HOLLIS. In addition to searching "metadata" (lots of descriptive info about a book or article), it also searches full-text . This can be an additional advantage when you've got a very narrow topic or are seeking a "nugget" that traditional database searching can't surface easily.
