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Sport

Journals and journal databases

Journal articles are a key source. When someone carries out a piece of research, a journal article is usually the format they will choose to write their research up as. So if you want to keep up with the latest research, you need to read journal articles. They also contain the high level of technical detail and nuance you will need for professional work.

Most journal articles are available online. You can search for journal articles on Library Search like books. But there are also dedicated databases which specialise in particular subject areas: because these concentrate on a single subject, they can offer more targeted, sophisticated search tools than a general purpose search engine or database, giving you superior search results.

Key database- SPORTDiscus

General purpose databases

These databases cover a wide range of subjects, of which sport-related material comprises just a small fraction. But these databases are also absolutely huge, so that 'small fraction' can still be a vast number of relevant articles!

Several of these databases also include advanced search features, which give you new ways of finding articles.

Databases - exercise science and coaching

Databases- sport psychology and psychological tests

Databases - physical education and school sport

Databases - sport business management

Databases - sport studies

Database Searching Tips

Split your assignment into keywords: To find more relevant and fewer results, think about your keywords. Make sure they accurately describe what you are looking for, and add more keywords to make your search more specific. For example for the assignment title "What role can sport play in the regeneration of a city?" keywords would be sport - regeneration - city

Think of alternative keywords: For example, 'young' could also be referred to as 'youth' or 'adolescent'. Or, think of the bigger picture. For example, instead of searching for 'boys' or 'girls', try searching for 'gender'. For the example above an alternative for regeneration might be 'development or renewal.'

Search for phrases in "double quotation marks": For example, "barriers to participation". This will search for the phrase as a whole, instead of the individual words.

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