Recommended Databases for RS110
The following online databases can provide a starting point for your theological research. For a complete list of the databases available at PTS, go to the Articles & Databases section of the library website. For more information on using databases to find journal articles, see the Finding Articles libguide.
- Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new window
Indexing and abstracts for more than 8,500 journals, with full text for more than 4,600 of those titles.
- Atla Religion Database with AtlaSerials PLUS This link opens in a new windowThe premier theological database with index and full-text of journal articles, book reviews, and collections of essays in all fields of religion.
- Brill Dictionary of Religion Online This link opens in a new windowContains more than 500 entries that addresses religion as an element of daily life and public discourse, the different theologies and doctrinal declarations of the official institutionalized religions, and gives equal weight and consideration to a multiplicity of other religious phenomena.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowJSTOR is a digital library that contains full-text journal articles, conference proceedings, primary source materials, and ebooks from a variety of disciplines.
- Oxford Scholarship Online - Religion This link opens in a new windowContains over 450 full-text eBooks featuring all areas of religion and theology from Oxford University Press. Narrow your choices under Availability to "purchased," "free," and "open access" to see a list of available eBooks.
- Religious and Theological Abstracts This link opens in a new windowContains indexes and summaries of articles published in scholarly religion and theology journals.
Already know the article you need?
The databases are a great place to browse large collections of journal articles by topic. However, at times you may find a relevant article via another avenue, such as cited in the bibliography of a book that is highly pertinent to your research. In this instance the databases are not the best tool for finding a specific, singular article. When you have a know citation you should instead use the Full Text Finder, accessed beneath the Research tab on the main library homepage via the link Find Journal Titles. In the search box at the top of the page, enter the title of the journal (not the article) from your citation, and click the title link. This will take you to the journal's title record. Click the + sign next to 'Print, Microform, or Full Text Access' to see if the journal is available in print, online, or both, and via what databases. Sometimes journals are available in multiple databases, but wth different coverage years, so make sure to choose the database that covers the specific year of your citation. Click the link for the appropriate database if online access is available, and you will be able to navigate to your article first by choosing the year or volume for your citation, and then the issue. If the library has print access, you will need to come in to the library and use the bound journal collection on the ground floor. Full Text Finder LibGuide.
What's a Library Database
Limiting to Scholarly Articles
In some of our databases you can limit the items in your result list to scholarly (also known as peer-reviewed or refereeed) articles only. The different limiters are found on the left-hand side of your result list under Refine Results.
One option is to check the Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals box under the Limit To heading. As you can see, there are some other limiters available that may also be useful in refining your search.
You can also limit your results to scholarly materials by choosing Academic Journals under Source Types.
Access Options in Databases
Full Text Online Items
Items in the databases that are available in full text can generally be downloaded as PDFs, and can be read online in their entirety. The availability of full text is indicated in the result list by the PDF Full Text icon circled below.
If you are doing searching off campus or at hours the library is not open, you may only want to see Full Text Available items in your searching. You can use the limiter on the left side of the Result List to see only those digitally available items. Caution: this feature eliminates results that may be relevant to your research, so only use it when absolutely necessary.
When limiting your results to Full Text, you may also see the green Full Text Finer icon shown below. This occurs when the library has a subscription to the journal indicated, but not through the database. Using the Full Text Finder link will take you to the library catalog record for the journal, which should contain a link to the journal online.
Print Journals
Articles indexed in the databases include journals that we have only in print, or older volumes of journals that have not yet been digitized. If an item in the result list says PTS owns this title and has a Check Holdings in the Barbour Library link as well as a green Full Text Finder link, it is only available in print in the library. Either link will take you to the library record for the journal title, which will provide additional information you may need, like what volumes or years we have in the library. Print journals can be found in the Periodicals room on the main floor, and are shelved in alphabetical order by journal title.
Titles Not Owned by PTS
You may find relevant materials indexed in the databases that we don't own or subscribe to at PTS. Those items can be identified by a result record that states Notes: ILL for items not held by PTS and has not other access options like the item pictured below. If you are interested in such an item, it can be obtained through Interlibrary Loan. See 'What if You Can't Access an Article You Need?' below for further information.
