Online research resources:

databases

Access the London Metropolitan University Library subject guides


Choose your subject, for example, Business.

Click on Key subject collections and select Company, country information and market research.


Choose your subject, for example, Health and Social Care.

Click on Key subject collections.

A list of useful Business University databases:

  • Business Source Complete

Data on business (marketing, management, accounting, banking, finance)

  • Mintel Reports

Database with UK market data: trends, companies, industries and countries

  • Passport

Market research data on industries, economies, consumers and companies

  • Statista

Database with international market data: trends, companies, industries, countries

It contains statistics, reports, market outlooks, forecasts, surveys, infographics and dossiers.

Please use this video on how to use the Business databases.


A list of useful Health and Social Care University databases:

  • Academic Search Complete

Database with journals, newspapers and magazines

  • Emerald Insight

Database with articles on management, health and social care, health services and social work

  • ScienceDirect

Large multidisciplinary database containing journal articles on scientific research

  • Web of Science

Citation database with multidisciplinary content

Effective database searching

Example of searching on Business Source Complete

How to narrow down your search to get less results that are more relevant to your research

  • Sort your search results by relevance

  • Limit your search to full text

  • Specify the source type you are looking for

  • Refine your search by publication date

SEARCH TECHNIQUES

Almost all academic databases require users to use the following search techniques, rather than doing a Google-style search:

1. Use search terms (e.g. retail, fashion retail, corporate social responsibility), not sentences (e.g. How mobile apps are used by fashion retailers).

2. Combine search terms using search operators (AND, OR, NOT), e.g. fashion retail AND apps, rather than typing sentences (e.g. How mobile apps are used by fashion retailers).

3. Use truncation (* = substitute for any number of characters) to broaden the scope of your search (e.g. searching for app* will return results with app, apps, applications and other words containing app).

4. Use phrase search (search for a phrase in speech marks, “…”) if searching for a stable expression, particularly specific terminology or spelling (e.g. searching for “relationship marketing” will ignore the results where relationship and marketing are not together). Google understands phrase search technique too.