Interlibrary Loan expands the range of available research materials. Materials not owned by FDU Libraries may be obtained from other libraries through Interlibrary Loan. Please see Requesting Interlibrary Loans for information on how to request materials to be sent to FDU Libraries.
Off-campus (remote) access to the FDU Libraries is available to students, faculty, and staff. When a database or resource is selected, a prompt for your FDU NetID and password will appear on your screen. Access will be granted upon verification of your credentials.
Course Reserves are books, eBooks, and other resources that a professor has reserved for a class. Visit our Course Reserves at Fairleigh Dickinson University Libraries page to check Course Reserves.
Citations provide credit to the author, editor, and/or publisher who created a source. It is vital to properly cite your sources to avoid plagiarism, which means intentionally or inadvertently taking credit for someone else's work. Citing sources also allows others to retrieve the same information. The resources on this page can help to create accurate citations for your sources.
Quick Tip: Citation styles vary based on subject and course. Always check which citation style your instructor requires prior to using the resources on this page.
The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) offers an excellent guide to citing resources in MLA, APA, Chicago, and AMA styles. OWL will show you how to properly cite everything from journal articles and books to websites, films, and social media.
The free version of Citation Machine allows you create citations in a variety of citation styles. Citation Machine also offers guides on creating citations, as well as various writing guides. Always double check the citations created with a citation generator with a resource such as OWL.
Use this Citation Machine Guide to learn about citation basics and how to cite your sources in MLA, APA, Chicago Style, and more.
M
endeley is a free, open-source citation management tool. Mendeley allows the user to store their citations all in one location for later reference, and will also create a Works Cited/Bibliography in various citation styles. Mendeley can be used on the web or downloaded to a PC or laptop.
For more information on Mendeley, visit our guide to Mendeley Citation Manager Version 1.19 (earlier version) or Mendeley Citation Manager Version 2.1 (later version)
Please view the following video to learn how to use Mendeley for desktop:
How to Use Mendeley Desktop, Web Importer, & MS Word Plugin (Full Tutorial). Video courtesy of Grad Coach via YouTube.
Note: Mendeley also provides a browser plug-in which allows the user to import citations directly into their account. However, it has been found to break some of our resources and so is not recommended at this time.
Zotero is a free, open-source citation management tool. Zotero allows you to store all your citations in one location for later reference, and will also create a Works Cited/Bibliography in your preferred citation style. After accessing the Zotero website, click the "Register" button on the far right of the page to create an account.
For more information on Zotero, visit our guide to Zotero Citation Manager.
Please view the following video to learn how to use Zotero:
Introduction to Zotero. Video courtesy of Northwestern University Libraries via YouTube.
The Elements of Library Research by
To do solid academic research, college students need to look beyond the computer search engine. This short, practical book introduces students to the important components of the information-seeking process. The Elements of Library Research provides a foundation for success in any research assignment, from a freshman paper to a senior thesis. Unlike guides that describe the research process but do not explain its logic, this book focuses entirely on basic concepts, strategies, tools, and tactics for research--in both electronic and print formats. Drawing on decades of experience with undergraduates, reference librarian Mary George arms students with the critical thinking skills and procedures they need to approach any academic project with confidence. Ways to turn a topic into a research question Techniques for effective online searches How to evaluate primary and secondary sources When and how to confer with reference librarians and faculty How to avoid plagiarism Glossary of key terms, from Boolean search to peer review Checklists, timelines, and hints for successful research projects
Digital Paper by
Today’s researchers have access to more information than ever before. Yet the new material is both overwhelming in quantity and variable in quality. How can scholars survive these twin problems and produce groundbreaking research using the physical and electronic resources available in the modern university research library? In Digital Paper, Andrew Abbott provides some much-needed answers to that question. Abbott tells what every senior researcher knows: that research is not a mechanical, linear process, but a thoughtful and adventurous journey through a nonlinear world.nbsp;He breaks library research down into seven basic and simultaneous tasks: design, search, scanning/browsing, reading, analyzing, filing, and writing. He moves the reader through the phases of research, from confusion to organization, from vague idea to polished result. He teaches how to evaluate data and prior research; how to follow a trail to elusive treasures; how to organize a project; when to start over; when to ask for help. He shows how an understanding of scholarly values, a commitment to hard work, and the flexibility to change direction combine to enable the researcher to turn a daunting mass of found material into an effective paper or thesis. More than a mere nbsp;how-to manual, Abbott’s guidebook helps teach good habits for acquiring knowledge, the foundation of knowledge worth knowing. Those looking for ten easy steps to a perfect paper may want to look elsewhere. But serious scholars, who want their work to stand the test of time, will appreciate Abbott’s unique, forthright approach and relish every page of Digital Paper.
How to Research by
How to Research is a clear and accessible guide to the business of doing a research project. It systematically takes the reader through from the planning to the writing up and finishing off. The new edition of this book will include: -Expanded section on methodology -Expanded section on Literature Reviews -Inclusion of a glossary
Research Design by
This bestselling text pioneered the comparison of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research design. For all three approaches, John W. Creswell and new co-author J. David Creswell include a preliminary consideration of philosophical assumptions; key elements of the research process; a review of the literature; an assessment of the use of theory in research applications, and reflections about the importance of writing and ethics in scholarly inquiry.New to this Edition Updated discussion on designing a proposal for a research project and on the steps in designing a research study. Additional content on epistemological and ontological positioning in relation to the research question and chosen methodology and method. Additional updates on the transformative worldview. Expanded coverage on specific approaches such as case studies, participatory action research, and visual methods. Additional information about social media, online qualitative methods, and mentoring and reflexivity in qualitative methods. Incorporation of action research and program evaluation in mixed methods and coverage of the latest advances in the mixed methods field Additional coverage on qualitative and quantitative data analysis software in the respective methods chapters. Additional information about causality and its relationship to statistics in quantitative methods. Incorporation of writing discussion sections into each of the three methodologies. Current references and additional readings are included in this new edition.
Additional research materials may be found freely and openly through Open Educational Resources (OER). Please watch the following video learn about what OER are and how to use OER. For recommended resources and for more information, visit our Open Educational Resources (OER) page.
Video: What Are OER? Created by Algonquin College Library under a Creative Commons license via YouTube.
Books and eBooks are found in FDU Libraries' Discovery Catalog. Unsure how to use the Discover Catalog? Visit our Discovery Catalog User's Guide to learn how to search the Catalog for a book, eBook, print journal, periodicals such as newspapers and magazines, DVDs, and more!
Scholarly sources, typically academic journals and articles, are written by researchers and/or experts in a field and undergo the peer-review process before being published. The peer-review process requires authors to submit their research to a publisher who will then share their work with other experts in the same field to review and evaluate. These experts will then determine if the information the author is presenting is credible.
Examples of scholarly sources include:
Journal of American History
Psychological Review
Nature
Annals of the National Academy of Science
Journal of the American Medical Association
Popular sources, typically periodicals such as magazines and newspapers, are written by journalists and/or staff who often write about a broad range of topics without necessarily being an expert on that topic. Outside of an editor making sure the article is well-written and some basic fact-checking, there is not an extensive process regarding what information gets published. Information found in a magazine or newspaper may still be trustworthy and accurate, but additional evaluation is needed.
Examples of popular sources include:
The New York Times
Newsweek
National Geographic
Psychology Today
Wall Street Journal
Citation: A (Very) Brief Introduction. This video provides a short introduction to how and when to use citations. Created by NCSU Libraries under a Creative Commons 3.0 BY-NC-SA US license via YouTube.
When using resources from the web, you must carefully evaluate the source before utilizing its content. The following criteria can help you evaluate resources:
Domain - The quality of information and the type of URL are interrelated. A ".gov" or ".edu" URL is more trustworthy than a ".com" or ".net". A ".org" URL will require deeper investigation, as it then depends on the type of organization.
Authority - Is the author's name visible? What are the author's credentials? Is contact information for the author available?
Currency - Is the website up to date? Websites with information that is updated regularly are preferable to those that are left out-of-date or recycled too often.
Bias - Anyone can create informational content online. Look out for a works cited list and advertisements to evaluate the bias and possible inaccuracies in the information.
Origin - How did you find this source? Was it recommended by a faculty member, cited in a scholarly journal article, or linked by another trustworthy website? Where you got this information can indicate how reliable it might be.
Functionality - If the website contains broken links, is difficult to navigate, and malfunctions often, then it reflects poorly on the credibility of the information.
How do you know if you have found reliable information? The CRAAP Test is a list of questions that you can use to evaluate the information that you find.
Currency: the timeliness of the information
Relevance: the importance of the information for your needs
Authority: the source of the information
Accuracy: the reliability, truthfulness, and correctness of the content
Purpose: the reason the information exists
