JSTOR

JSTOR (Journal Storage) provides dated articles from scholarly journals, some published as early as the 1800's.  From the library homepage, select Research, then Online Databases.  From the alphabetical listing, select JSTOR, then click on Search.

Basic Search

The Basic Search searches all indexes, e.g., author, title, etc. and all types of journal content, e.g., articles, book reviews, etc. 

• In the search box, type a word or phrase (see ex. given in the Quick Tips area below, or click Learn More for tips and help on using JSTOR).  Use quotes around phrases.
• Check the box, Search full-text content only to search within full text articles.
• Click Search. 

Displaying Search Results

• Citations for your results are displayed in list format (the default is 25 results per page; change this number for fewer or more results, then click Display).
• Search results may be modified by clicking Modify Your Search.
• You may sort your results. Click the down arrow near Sort by Relevance (for highest to lowest % relevance); Sort by Most Recent to Oldest or Sort by Oldest to Most Recent (to sort by dates published); Sort by Journal Title (to have results listed alphabetically by journal title).
• Click Sort when you have selected your choice.
• Click on an article title to view the full article.
• Print or download the article to disk.

Print, Save or Email Your Results

• To print an article: Click on the Print tab at the top of the page, then select Proceed with Printing.
• A new window appears.  This new window contains a citation of your article (useful for your Works Cited page), followed by a PDF copy of the article (photocopy of the article from the journal).
• Click  Save a copy to save the article to disk.
• Click Print to print the article. Note: it costs .10 per page to print at the library.
• Click Email to email the article to yourself.
• Exit this page and click Return to Previous Page
• Click the Article Information tab to view a citation of the article.
• Select the Table of Contents tab to view volumes/issues of this journal.
• Click the Search Results tab to return to your search results.

Other Search Methods

Advanced Search

•  Enter your word/s or phrases in the search boxes.
• Check: Full-text content only.
• Check: Fields to search, e.g., author, title, etc.
• Check: Types, e.g., article, review, etc.
• Specify dates: e.g., 1980 through 1989; 1975/06; etc.
• Select a journal to search (click "Show all titles in new window" and type in the journal title) or 
• Check an area of discipline and its journals.
• Click Search.

          Expert Search

• Enter your search query in the box using Boolean logic (AND, OR, NOT), e.g., Indians AND "South America" NOT Brazil.
• Select Full-text.
• Narrow your search to Fields: e.g., Article.
• Specify dates, e.g., 1959 through 1962.
• Specify a journal title or select a discipline, e.g., Anthropology
• Click Search.

          Article Locator Search 

          This search finds articles by "entering as much information about the article as possible," e.g. words found in the article title, the author (if known),  and/or the journal title (if known).  You can also enter if known: volume and issue number, publication date, etc.  This is a good way to find an article if you have a topic and would like articles based on that topic, e.g., women's movement.

         Searching for Information in Specific Journals

This may be done by first selecting a specific discipline, then the journal within that discipline, or  you can go directly to the alphabetical list of journals and select a journal to search.

• From the main JSTOR search screen, click on BROWSE.
• From the discipline list, select a particular discipline, e.g., Education. Journals within that discipline are listed.
• Click on a specific journal title, e.g., Journal of Higher Education 1930-2002.  Some journals like this one has links to current volumes.
• Select the volume to view.
• Select the issue to view.
• Select the article/s to view.
• Print or download the article (see "Print, Save, or Email Your Results" above).

What do you do if you get too many hits? 

• Use more search terms.
• Use more specific search terms.
• Try searching for the same keywords in the title or abstract fields, rather than the full-text field.
• Limit your search by date, journal title, or type of article.

What do you do if you get too few hits?

• If you have limited your search, try expanding your search (e.g. search in full-text rather than title or abstract, use a wider date range).
• Check for misspellings or other typing errors.
• Try using synonyms or variations of words.
• Use plurals, or other word endings.

          To learn more about searching in JSTOR, click on TIPS at the top of the main search screen.