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Get started with research

Learn how to use RRU Library resources to get started with your research.

Searching in Discovery

Discovery is the RRU Library's main search tool. Using Discovery, you will be able to search our collection of print books, e-books, peer-reviewed journal articles, theses, dissertations, videos, films, statistics, market reports, and more. 

Discovery is great for interdisciplinary research because it will retrieve a variety of sources from different journals in different topic areas related to your search. This, in turn, can help you broadly explore your topic area and build a good foundation of knowledge on the topic. Another advantage of using Discovery for your research is the fact that you will easily access academic sources for which we have the full text. 

Another major benefit of using Discovery is the variety of filters Discovery has. You can use the "Peer Review" filter under "Content Type" to limit your search only to peer-reviewed materials (quite useful if you have an assignment that requires you to use only peer-reviewed materials!) You can also limit the types of materials you are looking at by format using the "Format" filter, or find information on current debates and recent literature in the field by limiting the publication years of materials under the "Publication Date" filter.

Watch the video below for a short tutorial and example of how to use Discovery. 

Search in Discovery- a video tutorial

Discovery is the library’s search tool that allows you to search the majority of our collection of resources. Discovery is great for interdisciplinary research because it retrieves a variety of different sources related to your search and will help you broadly explore your topic area. Another advantage of using Discovery for your research is that you will access academic sources for which we have the full text.

Let’s explore tips for using Discovery by searching the example topic “the effects of advertising on children's mental health”. This topic includes multiple keywords, which is an effective way to find relevant results. In the main area of the Discovery search page, you can view all the results retrieved based on the keywords you’ve entered in the search bar. Click “read more” for a description or abstract of the item; this will help you determine if the article or book is relevant to your research. Access the full text for articles and eBooks by selecting the blue “view full text” or “view ebook” link.

You can also use the ‘Search Tools’ to filter your search based on format or by content type. For example, you can filter by journal articles or books, or based on the type of literature you need, such as peer-reviewed content. These search tools are listed in the left-hand menu on your search results page. Select any of the available filter boxes in the menu to refine your search results.

For more information, check out our Discovery resource guide.