Check out our list of textbooks and how to buy them here.

The library's online catalogue is here.

For an effective search, think about searching by using the Keywords tab.

The words that you select will make a big difference in the results that you get. If you want an exact title versus if you are generally looking, the results will look different.

For example: If you are searching for Women and their role in the bible, searching Women in the Bible, you will get different results than searching Women Bible.

The RMC Library has access to over 142,000 electronic books through the following sites. Off-site access is limited to Rocky Mountain College faculty, staff and students. Please contact the library for a list of the needed passwords.

EBSCO E-Books

This is a collection of over 140,000 electronic books, with content across all academic disciplines, including religion, theology, psychology, human services, and leadership.

• EBSCO Mobile App - Installation and Authentication FAQs
• The EBSCO Mobile App - Frequently Asked Questions

Infobase

A small collection of sixteen e-books on psychological disorders.

To find articles, start by visiting the Electronic Journals page.

Article Databases

For Religion, Leadership, and most other Academic classes, start with the ATLA Database

> ATLA Religion Database with Serials

For Psychology and Human services, start with the Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection.

> Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection

Remember that if you are accessing the Electronic Resources from home, you will need passwords.

Email the library if you do not know your passwords.

Searching for articles

Searching for articles is not the same as searching on Google.

The research process is cyclical and can be ongoing as you refine your topic.

Look below for an explanation of the steps in the Research Process.

1. The first place to start is to select a topic.

To find a good topic, that isn't too broad or too narrow, it is helpful to do some basic research (get a GENERAL OVERVIEW) to see what is available.

• See what subject interests you
• Look for Introductory information in Encyclopaedia Britannica (Links to an external site.) or other Reference Sources
• See what paper and on-line resources there are in your subject area
• If there aren't enough resources, broaden your topic.
• If there are too many resources, narrow your topic.

2. Once you have a topic,ask a good RESEARCH QUESTION to focus your research paper

• Focus on what you want to know about the topic
• Create a clear question that you can research and answer

Here's a good video by GSU about Developing a Research Question

3. Decide on the type of information you want and choose your research tool.

You will need to decide if you want books, ebooks, journal articles, magazines, videos, social media, internet resources, statistics, or other types of information.

Some tools to help you find your information are:

• The Library Catalog (here you can find ebooks that you can borrow online)
• Journal Databases (you can choose a database to look in, and download electronic articles from it)
• Reference tools (can give you basic information, and lead you to further books, articles, and search terms)
• Internet web pages (some web sources, like Google Scholar or Statistics Canada, can give you good information but you have to be cautious and evaluate the validity (Links to an external site) of the source)

4. Examine Your Search Results

First you Search...

Remember, when searching for a resource:

• Use Keywords, Boolean Searching or Phrase Searching to expand or narrow results
• Use Encyclopedias, Reference books, or other expert sources to help find further terms to search
• Follow the subject headings in the library catalog/databases to find more resources related to your topic
• Most books and articles will have a list of bibliographical references at the back that can lead you to more resources for your research.

Then you evaluate...

Once you find a resource, you need to decide if it is appropriate to use it.

Here is a video by University of Washington Libraries about evaluating the results you get from your search.

5. Refine your search, or write your paper

Once you have decided on a topic, asked a focusing research question, looked through tools to find resources, and evaluated the resources to find the best sources to help you, then it is time to write the research paper.

Collect what you've found, and organize it into a well-thought-out paper, where the research supports your NEW thinking. Make sure that your paper is about YOUR thoughts and isn't just re-quoting what someone else wrote.