Indexes are available in both paper and electronic formats. Although electronic indexes are generally easier to use, for some subjects there are no electronic indexes; for others, the best indexes are paper. The Libraries have both paper and electronic versions of many indexes. Keep in mind, whether you are looking for articles in scholarly journals or popular magazines, most electronic indexes only cover fairly recent publications.  Many do not cover articles written before the 1980's.  If you need to find earlier articles, you will probably have to use paper indexes.

Finding Articles in Scholarly Journals

• In the Ovid database system, Wilson General Science Abstracts covers subjects in the sciences (biology, chemistry, physics, etc.) Wilson Humanities Abstracts covers subjects in the humanities (art, literature, music, philosophy, religion, etc.), and Wilson Social Sciences Abstracts covers subjects in the social sciences (economics, psychology, government, etc.). One advantage of these three databases is that the Libraries have most of the journals they index. Coverage begins in the 1980's. Coverage for earlier years is available in paper indexes.
• The Libraries also offer many databases that focus on a single subject area.  For example, America: History and Life covers American history, PAIS (Ovid databases) covers national and international public affairs, and Wilson Art Abstracts (Ovid databases) covers art. Dates of coverage for these databases vary, but many include journals published from the 1960's and 1970's through current issues. These single subject indexes are also available in paper; in some cases, the paper indexes cover more dates than the electronic versions. Besides articles in journals, these indexes often cover other types of publications in the subject such as books, dissertations, and government documents. You may want to ask for assistance in interpreting the citations.
• Periodical Contents Index covers a wide range of subjects in journals published between 1770 and 1993.

Finding Articles in Popular Magazines

• Wilson Readers Guide Abstracts (Ovid databases) is the main index to use if your topic is likely to be covered in a popular magazine. The electronic version covers magazines published since 1983. In paper the Readers Guide goes back to the 1800's.
• Poole's Index, available only in paper, covers magazines published in the19th century.

Interpreting Article Citations

To find an article in a journal or magazine, the information you need from the citation is the author and title of the article; the title of the journal or magazine (often called the "source" in databases); publication information including volume number, issue number, and date; and the page numbers where the article can be found in the periodical.

Here are some typical citations. The information you need from each is highlighted.

• Schreiber, Evelyn Jaffe. Imagined Edens and Lacan's lost object: the wilderness and subjectivity in Faulkner's Go down, Moses. Mississippi Quarterly. v. 50, Summer 1997, p. 477-92.
  
  
• Accession Number 

     HUA98008674
Authors
     Allen, Sharon Lubkemann.
Title
     Dispossessed sons and displaced meaning in Faulkner's modern cosmos.
Source
     Mississippi Quarterly. v. 50, Summer 1997, p. 427-43.
Catalog Holdings
     Honnold has v.22(1968)-
Subject Headings
     Fathers and sons in literature
     Modernism (Literature)
     Allusions


• O'Bryan-Knight, Jean. From spinster to eunuch: William Faulkner's "A rose for Emily" and Mario Vargas Llosa's Los cachorros. Comp Lit St. 34(4), 1997, 328-47.

Need more help?
When you need help finding information, stop by the Reference Desk at one of the Libraries or make an appointment to talk with a Reference Librarian.