JSTOR Guide

Library @

University of Kurdistan Hewlêr

Content for this guide is adapted from information from JSTOR

Content

What is JSTOR and its coverage

How to access – Where to find it

How to use it - Search functions and filters

How to refine your result

Tips on how to improve your search

Introduction

JSTOR is an online library of journals, academic ebooks, and primary sources. It provides interdisciplinary, full-text, scholarly, peer-reviewed for most journal and ebookcontent. The collections include:

Journals – Contains the full-text of more than 2,300 journals from 1,000 publishers, with publication dates ranging from 1665 to current for certain titles. Journals are available across 60 disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences and mathematics.

Ebooks –Contains more than 50,000 ebooksfrom academic publishers. The ebooks work just like journals, offering unlimited use and DRM-free chapter downloads in PDF format.

Books are also available on-line for a fee. The UKH Library’s subscription does not cover this element of the available service.

HOW TO ACCESS

Due to licensing restrictions this service is only available for use while working within the University campus.

Go to https://www.ukh.edu.krd/

Navigate to Library→ Resources →Databases→ JSTOR

You will land on this page, with the caption on top ‘Access Provided by University of Kurdistan Hawler’

The value of creating your own account

1

2

Start by opening an account by clicking ‘Register’ on the main page. You will be taken to the following page: https://www.jstor.org/register?redirectUri=/ which will be useful on two points:

For when you start processing and saving the results of your searches

For setting up current awareness alerts on topics

The template requests you enter your name, user ID and password (Any email and password), then click on “Register”.

Fill in your details and password

How to start a search

JSTOR supports both basic search and advanced search.

It is necessary to plan which keywords to use, and how you will relate them to each other. It is only through planning that the optimal search results will be obtained

Start with a bigger picture, then filter to narrow down your subjects

Basic Search

The default search is Basic Search

Tips for using the Basic Search:

Place words within “quotation marks” to search for exact phrases e.g. to be or not to be

Use Boolean operators to construct a better search (“tea trade” AND china).

AdvancedSearch

To narrow down the result you can opt for Advanced Search

Tips for using the Advanced Search: Use the drop-down boxes to

limit search terms to the title, author, abstract, or caption text.

Use the drop-down boxes to combine search terms using AND/OR/NOT.

Use the “Narrow by” options to search only articles, include/exclude book reviews, search for content published during a particular time frame, or in a particular language.

You could also limit your search by using “Journal Filter”

Result

The “view” page for each item on JSTOR provides many ways to use the content, including reading the full text online and a PDF option for downloading. Look for the blue “Download PDF” button.

Citations for any item on JSTOR may be emailed, exported, or copied from the item view page. JSTOR provides pre-formatted citations in MLA, APA, and Chicago styles for quick copying and pasting.

Result – Choose the right resource

Do not just look at the title

You can refine your search by reading the abstract, to ensure that the content is relevant

Once you are satisfied you can choose to download / export citation / save

Tips to improve your results

Review the results and if: You have too many results, you narrow your search.

You have too few results, you widen your search.

You have found enough relevant sources, save the articles and citations to your laptop or memory stick

Some tips to remember when conducting searches: When searching SPELLING COUNTS – if you are getting no results,

but you think you should be, check your spelling

Search engines generally ignore capitalisation (Taiwan = taiwan)

Search engines generally ignore articles, such as the, an, and a.