InfoSkills for Economics and Management

What is a database?

The word "database" appears frequently throughout the InfoSkills tutorial, so it's important to understand what it means. Here's our definition:

• A database is a collection of information that’s specially organized for quick search and retrieval by a computer.

In everyday life, you’ve probably used databases – for example, when searching for songs on Spotify, looking up friends on Instagram, browsing clothes in an online store, and more.

Materials available in library databases

A library database is a specialized type of database that gives you access to a wide variety of trusted and high-quality information sources. They typically include articles from scholarly journals. Library databases may also include articles from professional journals covering specific industries or trades, along with articles from reputable newspapers and magazines.

Beyond articles, many library databases also provide access to (e-)books and high-quality grey literature, including working papers, research reports, and conference papers.

Not all databases offer full-text access to every listed document. Sometimes, a database will show only abstracts or citation information for certain items, while full-text access is available for others. Articles from open access journals, which are free for everyone, are often included.

Records & Fields

• Databases are made up of records, each representing an individual item – such as a scholarly article. These items, which may include other types of sources depending on the database, are commonly referred to as "documents."
• Database records consist of fields that describe each document. Each field holds a specific piece of information about the document, such as its title or publication year. While field names can differ, the following are common in library databases:
  • All fields
  • Full text
  • Title
  • Author
  • Source/Publication/Publication name (used for journals)
  • Publication year
  • Publisher
  • Abstract
  • Keywords (often provided by the author)
  • Subjects/Descriptors (words or phrases assigned to describe the content of each document)
  • Publication type (e.g., a journal article)

Below is an example of a record for an article and its associated fields from the ProQuest database​​​​​​:

Click to enlarge image

How articles are indexed and made searchable in databases

Take a moment to watch this brief 2.28-minute video.