Empirical research articles are peer reviewed or scholarly journal articles that report the research that the author(s) conducted themself. These may also be called primary research articles.
Empirical research articles will include these sections:
Not all peer reviewed articles are empirical or primary research articles. Instead, they may be articles that review and comment on research conducted by other researchers.
The best place to start searching for peer reviewed articles is the Linfield Libraries' databases. Why? Because we pay a lot of money so you can access the full text of journals through the databases.
Start your search with PsycINFO, one of the primary psychology databases.
If you are unable to locate enough sources on your topic in PsycInfo, you can also search in scholarly repositories on the web. These are sites where researchers and scholars provide copies of their work for other people in their fields to access. Research Gate is one of these repositories. Google Scholar also helps you locate articles in these repositories or in other collections, including the databases or journal collections that Linfield Libraries subscribes to.
A three minute video describing the peer-review publishing process. (Created by North Carolina State University Libraries)
A few tips for successful searching:
Example: depression AND "young adults"
Occasionally you may find that Linfield Libraries doesn't have immediate access to the full text of an article. You can still get a copy by requesting one through Interlibrary Loan (often referred to as ILL). The library staff will get a pdf copy of the article from another university library. This takes 3–5 days, and you will receive an email when your article is available.
Use the link below to sign into your interlibrary loan account and submit a request. You will need to register the first time you log in.
