SuperSearch: Get Article from Citation

If you find a citation outside of a Drake database, you can use SuperSearch to see if Drake has the article. Notes:

• This will not work for databases not connected to SuperSearch, like Bloomberg Law or Lexis Plus, but it will work for a wide variety of other databases.
• This assumes you have Drake credentials (are a current student or faculty or staff member)

Imagine you found this citation and want to see if you can get access through Drake:

Skowronek, S., & Orren, K. (2020). The Adaptability Paradox: Constitutional Resilience and Principles of Good Government in Twenty-First-Century America. Perspectives on Politics, 18(2): 354-369. DOI:10.1017/S1537592719002640

Step One: Try Inputting the Article Title in SuperSearch

Open SuperSearch, enter the title in the search box, and click enter or the magnifying glass to execute the search. 

After you enter your search, the search results will appear. If Drake has access to the article, it will likely be listed among the first couple of results. You will then click on Full text options to see where you can access the item, if it is available electronically. (If we only have it in print, this would show as being either available or unavailable (checked out). If it is available, it would provide the library name, collection location, and call number.

If your search results do not show what you need, try the following troubleshooting tips:

• If there is a subtitle, only input the portion of the title up to (and not including) the colon. In this case that would be The Adaptability Paradox
• Try eliminating any of these words at the start of the title: a, an, the. In this case that would be Adaptability Paradox
• Try adding some additional information, like author last name, after the word AND in all caps. In this case that would be Adaptability Paradox AND Skowronek.

If you got what you needed, when you click on Full text options, you will see the available databases. Sometimes there will be multiple options. In this case, there is just one: Cambridge University Press Current Complete. Before you click on the database to get the full text, you might look at other parts of the record to aid your research. For instance, many records will have an abstract that will help you determine if you need the item.

If you are off campus, after you click the database name you will go to a login screen where you will be prompted for your Drake credentials. If you are on campus, you will seamlessly open the database, unless it is a source that only has individualized credentials (like Westlaw).

You should be taken directly to the item record in most cases. Note that because you logged in through SuperSearch, the database recognizes you as a Drake patron.

Step Two: Use Journal Finder

If searching by article title does not work for you, try the journal finder. For instance, the article might be too new to be available yet electronically.

To use the journal finder you

1. Click on Journal Finder at the top of SuperSearch
2. Enter the journal title
3. Click the magnifying glass to search
4. Then review the search results. If we have the journal both in print and electronically, there will be two different records.

When you click Full text available to see where you can get the journal, you will see all linked databases that contain this title. (Note, however, not all Drake-subscribed databases can be linked in this way. Bloomberg Law and Lexis+ are two notable exceptions that have to be search directly.)

In the image below, you can see that we have the journal through two online sources. However, because JSTOR has a 6-year embargo on content for this title, that option did not show when searching by article title. Look at the complete record information to determine access.