Research Guides: Social Work: Articles & Journals

Find Articles in Research Databases

Social Work Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from over 500 social work and human services journals; produced by National Assn. of Social Workers (NASW)
Social Services Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text for journal articles and dissertations focused on social work and human services
SocINDEX with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from journals in sociology and related areas of history, anthropology, social work, political science, psychology, and law
Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from journals, magazines, conference proceedings, and more
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
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Identifies articles and references from journals in science, the social sciences, and art and humanities; selected full text available via Find It @ UHCL; results can be sorted by times cited; use Cited Reference search to find works that cite an earlier article or publication

Depending on your topic, these databases may be relevant. If needed, more choices are in Databases A-Z.

Family Studies Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from major journals and sources in family studies, marriage, divorce, and family therapy
LGBTQ+ Source This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from major and historically significant lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender journals, magazines, regional newspapers, and books. Name changed from LGBT Life with Full Text
PTSDpubs This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text for journal articles, dissertations, books, and more on post-traumatic stress disorder; sponsored by U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs; formerly PILOTS (Published International Literature on Traumatic Stress)
APA PsycINFO This link opens in a new window
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American Psychological Association (APA) content with selected full text articles from approximately 2,500 journals, plus books, book chapters, dissertations, and more
Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection This link opens in a new window
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Full text (sometimes delayed for six months or more) for approximately 400 journals in psychology and related fields
Race Relations Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Selected full text articles from major journals and sources in ethnic studies, discrimination, ideology, community relations, and immigration studies

Sample searches:
"social work" "evidence based practice"
"social workers" burnout

Refine your search with filters on results screen: peer-reviewed journals, available online, etc.

For more complex searches like ("child ause" OR "child neglect") AND (prevent* OR interven*), use Advanced Search.

While it doesn't offer some of the sophisticated options available in research databases, Google Scholar can be helpful. See instructions for customizing Google Scholar to provide Full Text @ UHCL links in results.

A peer-reviewed (or refereed) journal:

uses experts from the same subject field or profession as the author to evaluate a manuscript prior to acceptance for publication
has articles that report on research studies or provide scholarly analysis of topics
may include book reviews, editorials, or other brief items that are not considered scholarly articles

Anatomy of a Scholarly Article
Explains key elements from the first & last page of a typical scholarly or academic article. North Carolina State Univ. Libraries

Peer Review in 3 Minutes

(3:15) Explains the academic publishing process for research articles and scholarly journals, including the quality control process of peer review. North Carolina State Univ. Libraries

Get Full Text for an Article

If a database lacks immediate full text, click Find It @ UHCL in results to check for full text from another source. Follow Available Online links in OneSearch to a resource with full text for UH Clear Lake users as shown below.

If full text is not found, submit an article request.

Request a book, article, or other item
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Locating Full Text Articles and Journals

Find Out if the Library Has a Specific Journal

Get an Article from a Citation

Sample citation:
Fern, E. (2012). Developing social work practice through engaging practitioners in action research. Qualitative Social Work, 11(2), 156-173. https://doi.org/10.1177/1473325010387672

Use OneSearch to look for a DOI (digital object identifier). If there's no DOI, search for a distinctive "exact phrase" from the article title. Add an author name if needed. Examples:

10.1177/1473325010387672
"developing social work practice through engaging"
"developing social work practice through engaging" fern

If an article isn't available online, submit an article request.

Request a book, article, or other item
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