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Final Projects & Dissertations: Research Vocabulary

Library Words

This page contains words that are used when discussing academic literature, for example journals and databases.

Click on the lettered tabs below to read the words and their definitions.

Glossary

Abstract

A short summary of a journal article, outlining what it is about, research methodology and findings. The abstract should give you a good overview of the key points within the article so you can decide whether or not it is worth reading the full text for your research. 

Academic journal

Sometimes also referred to as scholarly or peer reviewed journal, these journals contain articles of a high academic standard. Articles are reviewed by experts in their field before they can be published and the authors have proven knowledge and expertise in their subject area. Journals will have more up to date research than books as they have a shorter publication time. 

APA

APA stands for American Psychological Association, and is the referencing style now used by Coventry University (some exceptions apply, for example, Law students can only use OSCOLA). We use the 7th edition.

Please see the referencing section on our libguides for more information, and speak to your librarian(s) for any help with referencing. 

Article

A paper or report that is published within a journal. Articles are written on very specific topics and contain references to other scholarly literature. They are accessed through online databases which we subscribe to. 

Bibliographic database

A database which does not contain the full text of the journal articles. It will contain descriptions of the articles, giving details of title, author, journal, issue and volume and usually an abstract. For most of our databases you can access the whole article (full text).

Bibliography

Details of books, journal articles and other material that have been consulted, but not necessarily referred to in an assignment, article, book etc.

Citation

A brief description of a resource such as book, journal article or online source, usually found within the text, given in a standard format, such as APA, OSCOLA, or Coventry University Harvard.

CU Harvard

The main style of referencing formerly used at Coventry University. 
For more information go to the The Coventry University Guide to Referencing in Harvard Style LibGuide.

 

Database

A collection of data stored electronically, that can be searched and retrieved. In library terms, databases usually host journals (and journal articles).

Endnote

A web based tool that enables you to manage your references, enter them in the correct format in a document and create a list of references.

et al

Abbreviation of et alii, which means ‘and others’. It is used in the in-text citations in the Coventry University Harvard referencing style when there are more than three authors of a book or journal article, e.g. (Smith J. et.al.).

Full text

Refers to journal articles where the whole article is available (as opposed to just the abstract).

Issue 

The smallest sub-division of a journal. Journals are divided into volumes, then issues. Issues could be published quarterly, monthly or weekly.

Ibid

This means ‘in the same place’ and is used in references to mean a title that can be found in the same place as something has been previously cited. Not used in APA or The CU Guide to Referencing in Harvard Style.

Journal

Journals contain a collection of articles written by experts in their subject and are an excellent source of information, usually focusing on one aspect of a topic (see also: Academic Journal). 

 

Journal Article

A paper or report that is published within a journal. Articles are written on very specific topics and contain references to other scholarly literature. They are accessed through online databases. 

Keywords

The main words that describe a topic. Use keywords to search for articles on a database or books on the library catalogue.

Magazine

Published at regular intervals, a magazine could be subject specific or have a broad subject area such as general interest or current affairs. They are more commercial in nature than journals, often containing advertising and may have a less academic readership.

Periodical

A publication relating to a specific subject, e.g. management, engineering, nursing, etc that is published at regular intervals such as annually, quarterly, monthly or weekly. They contain a collection of articles written by experts in their subject and are an excellent source of information, usually focusing on one aspect of a topic. 'Periodicals' and 'Journals' are the same thing. 

Peer-Reviewed journals

These journals contain articles of a high academic standard. Articles are reviewed by experts in their field before they can be published and the authors have proven knowledge and expertise in their subject area.

Plagiarism

Passing someone else’s work off as your own. This is considered to be a very serious offence and could result in not receiving any marks for an assignment. Correct referencing will help you to avoid this.

Reference

Description of a resource such as book, journal article or online source, in a standard format which enable others to locate the resource.

Refine

A way of making your search more accurate by narrowing your results. Use categories such as subject, format or date on the left hand side of your results page on most library databases.

Refworks

A web based tool that enables you to manage your references, enter them in the correct format in a document and create a list of references.

Scholarly journal

These journals contain articles of a high academic standard. Articles are reviewed by experts in their field before they can be published and the authors have proven knowledge and expertise in their subject area. Means the same thing as 'Academic Journal' and 'Peer-reviewed Journal'.

Trade journal

Journals that are aimed at people who work in particular professions or occupations, e.g. accountancy, civil engineering or nursing. They differ from academic journals in that the articles are not generally peer reviewed and are shorter. Trade journals also contains advertising for products, training and jobs.

Volume

A division of a journal. Most journals have a different volume number for each year, usually split into a number of 'issues'.