Finding research which has applied certain tests and measures or methodologies…

…is relatively easy to achieve on PsycINFO. Near the top of the screen in PsycINFO is a link to the database’s indexes. Click on this and then choose an index to browse. For example, you might want to choose ‘methodology’. Enter the name of the methodology you want to browse for (e.g. literature review, systematic review, longitudinal study…), select it from the results list, then add it to your search. In your search box you should now see something that looks like: (ZC "longitudinal study"). Combine this with your search e.g. (ZC "longitudinal study") and social cognition. All search results will then be for research which has applied that particular methodology.

To find research which has applied a particular test or measure, follow the same steps as above, but choose ‘Tests & Measures’ from the list of indexes. It is important to note that this will only find research which has applied the test or measure – it won’t find a copy of the test or measure itself.

PC booking service now available at Stratford and Docklands libraries...

...via the MyPC service. For full information, including how to book, see the MyPC service web page. This new service means that you can ensure a PC will be available for you to use in either Stratford or Docklands library by booking it in advance for a session of up to 2 hours. There are dedicated PCs being used for this service and rest assured that all other PCs are still available for use at any time, in case you haven't arranged a bookable PC in advance.

The British Psychological Society (BPS) Research Digest...

...makes for a fascinating read, no matter which area of psychology you are currently studying or researching. It is presented as a blog, with daily posts presenting a mixture of interesting, informative and sometimes entertaining findings from psychological research around the world. Links for further information, and often to the full research, are provided in all posts. There are also links provided down the sidebars of the blog to: psychology vacancies, other psychology blogs and various special features. You can also set up an RSS feed (as you can with this blog!) to keep you up-to-date with the latest posts. To access the BPS Research Digest, follow this link: http://bps-research-digest.blogspot.com/.

Automatic renewal of your library books...

...has been active since January. This means that you no longer need to renew books yourself (in person, online, over the phone or however you used to do it). Once you borrow a book you can now effectively keep it indefinitely, unless another user requests it (or your account is blocked for any reason), in which case the book must be returned as soon as possible.

The really important thing to remember is to keep an eye on your emails, because if anyone requests the item then you will need to return it, or risk incurring a fine. You can also opt to set up text alerts, so that you are informed by text message when your book is due back. To set up text alerts, sign in to your library account via the library catalogue and click on the 'text messages' link to enter your mobile phone number. Alternatively, ask about text alerts at any UEL library.

Finding quality websites for your research / assignments...

...is a tricky business. We all know (or hopefully we do!) the perils of using the web for finding reliable academic quality information. Many websites you find through Google, Bing, Dogpile, AltaVista or any of the other mainstream search engines are likely to be of dubious quality. The sites you find may be strewn with careless (or even malicious) mistakes, they may have been written for a particular audience (e.g. people of a certain political persuasion, potential clients for a company and so on), they may be horribly out-of-date and, above all else, all the above may not be at all obvious (seeking information on the 'tree octopus'?: http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/). For further advice on sorting out 'good' sites from the 'dubious' ones, pick up a copy of our free guide, 'Evaluation of Web Sites' from any UEL library.

Of course, your primary port of call for quality information should be the library's resources - high-quality academic databases such as PsycINFO, our book stock and so on. However, sometimes the web can be useful for finding other information. So, how do you find reliable, high-quality websites?

The answer is that there are many different ways. And the means I want to highlight today is through 'gateways' or 'directories'. These are alternatives to search engines where instead of searching across the whole web, you are searching across specially selected collections of websites, organised into categories (meaning you can either search or browse through the websites). In the case of Intute, these websites have been selected specifically with UK universities in mind. This means that all the websites you find through Intute have been 'verified' as being of academic quality, and, importantly, won't be primarily American websites (as is often the case with general search engines). Another example is Google Directory. You will need to be a little more careful with this one, but it is a large and growing directory which should give more reliable websites that a standard Google search as all websites have been handpicked. I would suggesting browsing the 'Psychology' section of Google Directory (the link is on the front page, under 'Science') - you will see that this then expands out into dozens of sub-categories of psychology which can then be browsed through for websites on that subject area.

One little health warning: even through Intute, Google Directory, Yahoo! Directory, dmoz, Best of the Web and other gateways and directories, you must always evaluate the information you find before using it in your research or assignments - just because it is more likely to be reliable doesn't mean it is reliable!

Saving your searches on PsycINFO/ PsycARTICLES...

...means that you won't need to duplicate effort by repeating your searches the next time you log on. To be able to save searches for the future, you will need to set yourself up for a free 'My EBSCOHost' account:

1. Click on 'Sign in to My EBSCOHost' (at the top of the PsycINFO /PsycARTICLES screen).
2. Choose to 'Create a new account'.
3. Fill out the short form, and you're done!

As well as being able to save searches (via the 'search history' option, once signed in), you can also set up folders to save articles you have found and create personal preferences (such as how results are displayed). Other extra functionality you will gain includes being able to set up email or RSS alerts (for when new articles are published which match saved searches) and being able to share folders with other users. And the best thing of all, is that this extra functionality is all available to you for free by following the very simple account creation instructions above. As ever, do get in touch with me if you have any questions.

New books in the library...

...added to stock during the month of January 2010 can be viewed from this link: January 2010 new books list. Please note that it only lists items purchased from the library's 'psychology' book funds.

The list includes e-books added to stock, as well as those of the traditional paper variety. We now have well over a thousand e-books available through our library catalogue - a figure which is growing all the time. To find an e-book on the catalogue, simply search for it (as you would for a 'normal' book) and follow the link which says 'Online access'. You will need your Athens username and password, but should then have instant access to the whole book, on or off-campus, at any time of the day (even when all the print copies are out on loan in the library!).

Self-collection of reservations...

...now available in Stratford campus library (on a four month trial). As you probably know, the library is open 24/7 during term-time. However, until now it has not been possible to pick up books you have reserved outside of our unstaffed hours (http://www.uel.ac.uk/lls/about/openinghours.htm). As of yesterday (8th February), though, we have started a trial of placing reserved items on open shelves near the self-issue machines. More information is available here: http://www.uel.ac.uk/lls/news/index.htm#selfcollection.

I'm sure you will agree that this is excellent news, as it means that even during staffed hours, you will no longer need to queue at the front counter to pick up items! Fingers crossed the trial will prove a success and we might then be able to roll this out as a permanent new service feature. Keep your eyes peeled!

And so begins a brand new blog...

...brought to you by me - Graham Fennell, Subject Librarian for Psychology at UEL. Intended as a means of updating students and staff in the School of Psychology here at UEL, this blog will feature:

• News on services and innovations in the library.
• Tips, tricks and advice on literature searching in the area of Psychology.
• Info on new books added to library stock.
• Anything else of potential interest to Psychology students and staff.