Off The Shelf

Do you need to conduct primary research using a specific methodology?  Do you need to know which methodology is best for the type of information you want to gather? 

The library is please to let you know that we recently added the Sage Research Methods (SRM) database.

SRM is a tool designed specifically to help students and faculty with their research projects. Researchers can explore methods concepts to help them design research projects, understand particular methods, or identify a new method. Since SRM focuses on methodology rather than disciplines, it can be used across the social sciences, health sciences, and more.

With the addition of SRM, we now have a multiple-user copy of one of our most highly sought-after resources!

Phenomenological Research Methods by Clark Moustakas is one of our most-requested Interlibrary Loan (ILL) books of all time.  It’s also a required textbook for many methodology courses.  And it’s a very popular text for learners taking their comprehensive exams.

To find Phenomenological Research Methods in the library, click on the Books tab and enter the title of the book.  You should get one result.  To get to the book itself, click on the link for the database, SAGE Research Methods Online.

For additional instructions on how to use Journal and Book Locator to find books, take a look at our Journal and Book Locator Guide.

Still have questions about finding articles by methodology?  Other great resources in the library include our Search by Methodology guide and our Ebook List on Methodologies.

- Sam

Looking for specific data? We have a great guide that contains tips on finding data sets and statistics. Check out our list of assignment guides first to see if any of your assignments this week has a guide, then use the link below to go to our Statistics and Government Resources Library Guide.

• BUS3004 Functional Areas of Organizations
• PSY5246: Play Therapy – Assignment Research Guide (u07a1)
• SHB8775 – Aging/Grieving Course Project Research Guide
• Looking for articles on sexuality in middle adulthood? Click your course number to go to the course guide:
  • SHB5003
  • HS5002

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

Do you need to find data or statistics? While we do not have data sets in our library, the Statistics and Government Resources Library Guide gives suggestions and links for where to find statistics available on the internet. Browse through this guide to see if there is a web site that might have the information you are looking for.

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

-Chelsea

Have you ever found a great article, and want to know how to find similar articles? This week we will feature Library Guides with tips on finding articles using the articles you already have, along with the guides that have been created specifically for assignments during week six. First, see if your course has a guide:

• BMGT8438: Trends & Theories
• COUN5238: Counselor and Client Safety
• ENG1000 – Library Research for Your Papers
• PS4160 Criminal Procedure and Evidence
• PSY7110: Western and Non-Western Theorists
• PSY7210: Researching for Case Study Assignments (Unit 6)
• PSY7220 Research Guide
• PSY7310: Cultural Aspects of Biological Psychology
• Working with Asian, Hispanic, and Latino Americans
• Looking for theoretical articles? Check our Finding Articles by TYPE Library Guide

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

Use these guides for tips on how to find additional articles using the articles you already have:

• Bibliography Mining and Cited Reference Searching
• Finding Related Articles (Based on the Articles You Already Have)

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

-Chelsea

Smarthinking: Use Tutoring to Improve Your Writing and More, Thursday, May 16,  1:00 pm CDT / 2:00 pm EDT

Our friends in the Learning Assistance Center will be teaching this webinar about Smarthinking.   Smarthinking is a free academic tutoring service available to all Capella learners.

By attending this webinar, you can learn how to create your account, how to submit your writing for feedback,  and what to do with your feedback.  You can also learn how to use Smarthinking for tutoring in other subjects and topics, including APA formatting style, reading, computers and technology, and statistics.

If this webinar time doesn’t work for you, you can find information about Smarthinking by going to the Academic Tutoring page in iGuide.

Please note:  Smarthinking is not part of the library, and we are not able to answer questions about how to use it.  Please use the above-mentioned resources.

Searching for information on the Internet? This week we will be highlighting Library Guides that can assist in evaluating information you find online. First, look through this list to see if you have an assignment this week that has a guide, then check the guides below for Internet tips:

• COUN5282: Classroom Guidance and Group Counseling Plans
• MPA5002 First Course Guide (Unit 4)
• PHI1000: Personal Philosophy Project
• PSF5002: Public Safety Case Analysis Project
• PSY5246: Play Therapy – Assignment Research Guide (u04a1)
• PSY7320: Case Study – Assessment and Treatment
• Scholar-Practitioner Research Guide
• Looking for Experimental or Quasi-experimental articles? Try our Finding Articles by TYPE Library Guide.
• Looking for articles on Kohlberg or Piaget? Click your course number for the course guide:
  • HS5002
  • SHB5003
• Looking for articles on Bronfenbrenner? Click your course number for the course guide:
  • HS5002
  • SHB5003

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

Using Internet sources? While many instructors may require peer-reviewed sources only, if you need to find web sites or other information from the Internet, use these guides to help search the Internet and determine credible sources:

• Can I Use Wikipedia?
• Evaluating Internet Sources
• Google Scholar
• Internet Searching Tips
• Specialized Search Engines

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

-Chelsea

This week we are highlighting guides about Reference Materials available in the library, as well as the assignment guides for upcoming assignments. To start with, look to see if any of your assignments this week has a guide:

• BIO1000: Statin Drugs
• BMGT8438: Trends & Theories
• COUN7503: Clinical Evidence
• ENG1000 – Library Research for Your Papers
• MPH5212: Proposal, Annotated Bibliography, and Literature Review
• Practitioner-Scholar Research Guide
• PSF8358: Police Misconduct in Common Law Countries
• PSY7310: Ethical Issues in Biological Psychology
• PSY7411: Behaviorism – Conditioning Theories
• SHB8775 – Aging/Grieving Course Project Research Guide
• Looking for information on Nurture vs. Nature? Click your course number to go to the course guide:
  • HS5002
  • SHB5003

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

Want to find books or reference sources on your topic? The guides below focus on finding background information:

• How do I Find Books?
• Ebooks list on Research Methodology
• General Reference Sources Online
• Database Guides for Reference databases:
  • Credo Reference
  • Gale Virtual Reference Library
  • Oxford Handbooks Online
  • Sage Knowledge

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

-Chelsea

Thanks for checking out this week’s Spotlight. We’ll start with a list of guides that have been created for this week’s assignments, then feature various guides we have on APA and citing.

See the list below for week two assignments that have Library Guides:

• MBA6004: Research Scavenger Hunt
• MBA6135: Researching Data Mining & Reporting
• MPA5002 First Course Guide (Unit 2)
• Need to find single experiment articles , non-experimental or experimental articles, or theoretical articles? Check out the Finding Articles by TYPE Library Guide.

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

Looking for a DOI or persistent link, or have questions about citing? Check out the guides below for tips:

• Dealing with an Absent DOI
• Automated Citations from the Library Databases
• Citing Secondary Sources in APA Style
• Persistent Links and DOIs

Looking for additional APA assistance beyond the tips available in our library? The APA Style Blog, written by APA style experts, can be a great resource for finding answers to tough or unusual APA questions, including posts about citing web sites, finding examples in the manual, and combining examples to fit your reference.

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

This week, the Capella University Library joins libraries in schools, campuses and communities nationwide in celebrating National Library Week!

Libraries today are more than repositories for books and other resources. Often the heart of their communities, campuses or schools, libraries are deeply committed to the places where their patrons live, work and study.

It is the mission of Capella University Library to provide effective, timely and reliable library services and resources to learners and faculty in support of academic quality and program completion.  Please, Ask a Librarian if you need assistance!

In the library, learners will find:

• Databases:  46
• Full Text eJournals:  45,580
• eBooks:  115,880
• Dissertations – Full Text:  1,200,000
• Company Records:  80,000,000

Capella Librarians and staff have created over 260 guides to assist you with assignments, research, and library skills.  Also, be sure to check out our live webinars and recorded webinars for additional assistance.

New to online libraries?  See our Introduction to Online Libraries page.

Do you need help identifying scholarly resources, defining your topic, or searching effectively?  Take a look at our Library Research & Information Literacy Skills site for many helpful strategies and resources.

And be sure to see what’s happening at your local public library or your children’s school library, too!

First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.

Welcome to this week’s Spotlight! Every week during the quarter we will start with guides that have been created for assignments due that week. Does your assignment have a Library Guide? Check the list below:

• DPA8002: Defining Public Administration
• ENG1000 – Library Research for Your Papers
• FD1800 Communities of Inquiry – Library Search
• HS5334 & COUN5334: Hate Group Websites
• MBA6135: Researching Data Mining & Reporting
• OM8020: Theory of Grilling Research
• PS3600 u01d1 Library Research Guide
• PSY7110: Schools of Thought
• Looking for articles on for the Walt Whitman assignment? Try the Studies in Human Behavior First Course – Library Research Guide (SHB5003)
• Need to find qualitative or quantitative articles? Try the Search by Methodology Library Guide.
• Need to find information on a company or industry? Try the Industry and Company Information Library Guide.

Don’t see your course listed here? Some guides have been created for entire courses rather than specific assignments. Check out our full list of assignment guides to see if your course has a guide.

If you are new to using the Capella University Library, the guides below offer overviews of how to search:

• Finding Articles for Your Discussion Post
• How to Search the Library: The Basics
• How Do I Find Peer Reviewed Articles?
• Library Glossary: Find definitions of key library terms
• See all of our Getting Started Library Guides

There is a new Spotlight posted every week. To see previous posts in this series, click the Spotlight tag:

-Chelsea

Finding Peer-Reviewed Articles in the Library:  Thursday, April 11th, 2012,  7:00 PM CDT

Need to find articles for your coursework?  Whether they need to be peer-reviewed or not, if you ever get frustrated that you sometimes get too many or too few results or results that don’t seem on-topic, then this is a great webinar for you!  Sign up for the webinar and learn how to search the library databases more effectively.

If the timing of this webinar doesn’t work out for you, see our Library Guides.  We have guides and tutorials that are available 24/7 that can help you find an article for a discussion post,  find peer-reviewed articles, or prepare for your dissertation.

RefWorks:  Saturday, April 13th, 2012, 10:00 AM  CDT

Now that you’ve learned how to find articles in the library,  how do you keep track of what you’ve found?  Learn how to collect, organize, and store citations from library databases and other resources using RefWorks.  If you haven’t been using this handy tool to take control of your research process, sign up for a RefWorks webinar today!

If you can’t make this webinar, our RefWorks information page  includes helpful guides, video tutorials and a recording of an earlier webinar to help you get started.

If you still have questions, contact the library.

-Kim