How do I find primary research articles (for STEM, social science)?
Please note, the word "primary" has different meanings in different contexts -- especially in humanities classes like History or English. This FAQ applies to research in STEM/science and social science.
It helps to think about this research process in two steps.
Step 1. Use the LAVC Library website to find scholarly journal articles on your topic.
Take a look at the directions and screenshots on our online guide to Finding Articles, which specifically shows how to use the search box on the Library homepage and narrow down your search results to scholarly journal articles.
Search tip: You can start by typing several keywords into the single "OneSearch" search box on the Library homepage, like this: depression "child development" morals ethics
You may get more (or different) results if, on the next page, you try ADVANCED SEARCH (next to the search box at the top of page). The example pictured below separates different aspects of the topic into different rows, and uses the asterisk symbol (*) to search for words that share a common root (in other words, ethic* searches for ethic, ethics and ethical).
After you click on "Search," click on "Scholarly Journals" on the left of the search results. You might also want to refine the Publication Date, to limit your search results to more-current research.
To explore any search result you find interesting, click on its title. Scroll down the page until you see "View Online," and try the links there to see the full text. At this point, you'll be asked to log in (see here for login directions)
Step 2. Look at the full-text of the articles to determine whether they are primary research articles.
A primary research article is an article published in a scholarly journal, where the authors of that article report -- in detail -- the methods and results of a research project they have done in the lab or in the field. You can determine whether you're looking at a research article by looking for clues.
The best, and most likely, clue you can find, is a "Methods" section (or something similar, like "Methodology," "Methods and Materials," or even "Research Design"). This Methods section should be pretty long (anywhere from half a page to several pages), and should explain how the authors did their research, in enough detail that a reader could learn how to do the same experimental work if they wanted to replicate that study.
Another good clue you might see is a helpful note on the first page of the article, such as "Research Article" or "Original Research."
