Databases, Academic

An academic database is a searchable collection of information from published works. Databases either index or include articles, magazine or newspaper articles, books, conference papers, and images. However, many are composed of peer-reviewed articles. Peer-reviewed articles are written by experts and researchers in a particular field. Before an article can be published, it is typically reviewed by other experts (i.e., the author’s peers) for accuracy. Peer-reviewed articles often are perceived to hold the highest degree of credibility, because these articles undergo rigorous review by other experts. Whether they contain nonrefereed or refereed materials, databases provide authoritative and dependable information on a wide range of topics. In addition, databases save an enormous amount of time, since they save researchers from searching through individual publications to find ...