PsychINFO Tutorial

Understanding the Citations

PsycINFO indexes various types of literature in psychology. When you have retrieved citations that interest you, it is important to determine whether the items are books, chapters in books, journal articles, dissertations, or reports, so you can find them in the library or request them through Interlibrary Loan. Understanding the elements of a citation can help you know how to obtain the items.

Consider the citations below. Notice that each one gives the type of publication in parentheses following the citation.

Before consulting the catalog or requesting items through Interlibrary Loan, it is important to know what type of publication is represented by the citation. Consider the following information about the records in the list above:

Record 1: Journal Article

All of the elements are important when you look for or request a journal article. Be sure to accurately record the volume number, the issue number (in parentheses), the date of publication, and the page numbers, (in addition to the title, author, and the name of the journal or magazine).

Record 2: Dissertation

Keep in mind that dissertations usually are not available through interlibrary loan. The abstract summarizes the findings of the study and may be used as a source of information, but you will probably not be able to obtain the entire document.

Record 3: Chapter in a book

Take a close look at Record #3. There is more detail in this type of citation, and care must be taken in requesting a chapter through interlibrary loan. When you would like to have a copy of a chapter in a book that is not held at King's, it is usually best to request the entire book. Be sure to use the request form for a book and write the title of the book (not the chapter) in the space provided. Notice the sequence of the elements in the citation below. The author (or editor) and the title of the book will always follow the word "In."

Record 4: Book

The citation for an authored book is rather straightforward. The important elements are the title, author, date of publication, and edition number (only if a particular edition is desired).

After you have considered the citation and know whether you need a book, chapter, or journal article, consult the King's College Library Catalog to see if the item is held by King's. If it is not, you might want to consider using Interlibrary Loan service.

For help in understanding how to use the catalog to determine what journals
are available at King's, click on "Using the Catalog" below.