Databases

What is a research database?

A research database is a structured collection of information organized into a standard format. It may include journal articles, book chapters, theses, indexes of journal articles, images, etc. Most databases allow users to interrogate them by means of recognized searching techniques, e.g. Boolean Searching.

Libraries purchase/subscribe to these databases via various publishers or providers (see below for some examples) and allow authorised users to access them over the Web.

Some very useful databases are freely available without a subscription, e.g. HighWire Press, PubMed, Google Scholar, Scirus.

Different types of research databases

	TYPE		DESCRIPTION
	Bibliographic databases		These offer citations of articles in magazines, journals and newspapers, etc. Many bibliographic databases also contain abstracts. Examples: Index to SA Periodicals on SABINET, Philosopher’s Index.
	Full-text databases		Many databases contain the full text of articles in different formats such as pdf or html. Examples: ScienceDirect, SA ePublications, Oxford Journals Online.
	Numeric databases		Provides numerical data such as statistics, survey results, census information, etc. Example: DataStream with access available at dedicated computer workstations in the RU Library.
	Hybrid databases		Provide a combination of records, some offering only abstracts and some abstracts plus the full text of articles. Examples: Academic Search Premier, HighWire Press.