Welcome to the DCTC Library's Psychology subject guide. On this page you will find helpful information about the research and writing process, including links to help you evaluate and cite your sources.
The 2nd page has information about the resources in our library and how to find them using our catalog.
The 3rd page is a gateway to the Library's best online resources and web sites for psychology, including some tutorials for these resources.
Let's get started!
Here's a helpful guide to writing psychology papers, including some ideas about designing your own study:
- Psychology (The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
A literature review is similar to, but not quite the same thing as an annotated bibliography. These are helpful guides to writing a lit review:
- Literature Reviews (The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
- Learn how to write a review of literature (The Writing Center • University of Wisconsin – Madison)
Abraham Lincoln famously said you shouldn't believe everything you read online. And 82% of all statistics are made up.
There's a lot of misinformation out there. Digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield developed the SIFT method to help students evaluate information and make better decisions about what sources to trust:
Stop
Investigate the source
Find better coverage
Trace claims, quotes, and media to the original context
Here are more guides to help you evaluate sources of information:
- Criteria for Evaluating Information (Otis College of Art and Design)
- Evaluating Information (Johns Hopkins University)
- Evaluating Resources (UC Berkeley)
- Evaluating Sources of Information (Purdue University)
- Online Verification Skills with Mike Caulfield (YouTube)
There are different styles for citing the sources you use in your assignments, but psychology writing usually requires APA (American Psychological Association) style. The Purdue Online Writing Lab has an excellent guide to using APA style, with lots of examples:
You can also go straight to the source:
Our catalog and databases provide citations for the books, videos, and articles you find in them. Just look for a link that says Cite or Citation, then select APA style. It's easy to copy and paste citations into your bibliography!
"Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to, the use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgment. It also includes the unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials."
This definition of plagiarism comes from page 1 of DCTC's Student Code of Conduct.
Citing your sources like this or in a bibliography is an essential part of the research process. It allows others to verify your information and gives credit to previous researchers and writers for their work.
The Center for Student Success offers tutoring to all DCTC students, including help with writing your paper and citing your sources. You can schedule an appointment by calling 651-423-8420 or visiting room 2-101.
Use our catalog, OneSearch, to find the books and videos on our shelves, plus ebooks and streaming videos.
The best way to begin your search is to enter one or two keywords on your topic. To narrow your results, use the Modify My Results options on the left side of the screen. You can also click on a relevant title and click on one of its subject headings to focus your search on that particular topic.
Please ask a librarian if you need help locating anything you find in our catalog.
If we don't have the book, video, or article you're looking for, you can request it via interlibrary loan (ILL) and it will come to you. It's easy! E-mail library@dctc.edu to let us know what you're looking for and we'll do the rest.
We have lots of books about psychology in our collection. Many of these are shelved in the BF call number range, but you'll find books about the brain, neuroscience, and neuropsychology in the QP351-495 and RC321-571 ranges. Ask a librarian if you need help finding anything.
Here are just a few of our books about psychology:
Behind the circulation desk we have our Course Resources collection. These are books and videos that instructors have asked us to reserve for certain classes. Books for Psychology courses include Kalat's Introduction to Psychology, Kail's Human Development: A Life-Span View, and Durand's Essentials of Abnormal Psychology. Books on reserve must be used in the Library, except with permission from your instructor to check them out overnight. Ask a librarian if you're looking for one of these.
APA PsycArticles features full-text articles from about 120 peer-reviewed psychology journals, covering all fields of psychology.
Searching APA Databases tutorial
Gale OneFile: Psychology offers 4.1 million articles in all fields of psychology.
Films On Demand features almost 2,600 streaming videos on psychology, including topics in abnormal, cognitive, developmental, and social psychology.
There are millions of full-text articles in our EBSCO, Gale, and ProQuest databases. The best way to begin your search is to enter one or two keywords on your topic. Each database is different, but there will be ways to limit and focus your results so that you find the most relevant and useful articles available.
Our EBSCO databases are an excellent place to start your search for magazine and journal articles. These databases include APA PsycArticles, which covers all topics related to psychology.
Our Gale databases are another great place to find magazine and journal articles. These databases include Gale OneFile: Psychology, which covers all topics related to psychology.
Search hundreds of U.S. newspapers, newswires, and news sites with ProQuest U.S. Newsstream.
Search and explore scholarly literature with Google Scholar. Some citations include links to full-text content.
Please visit the Library or e-mail library@dctc.edu if you have any questions about our online resources or if you'd like help finding articles on your topic.
Here are just a few of the ebooks from our EBSCO eBook Collection that relate to psychology:
History of Psychology 101
David C. Devonis, 2014
The Nature-Nurture Debates: Bridging the Gap
Dale Goldhaber, 2012
Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning
Peter C. Brown, 2014
Encyclopedia of Abnormal Psychology
Aleksei Maksimov, 2012