Ovid databases guide

Before you start searching, think about keywords for your given subject. You may find it useful to do some preliminary reading in textbooks and encyclopaedias which will help you identify some keywords, and perhaps also key authors.

Firstly, we will do a very quick search so that you get an idea of how to and navigate your way around one of the Ovid databases. We advise that you should do your searching using the advanced search tab. When you do, your search box will look like the below. 

If you keep the Map Term to Subject Heading box ticked then the database will suggest subject headings to help your search. You can find out more about using these in our searching with subject headings section

Search for a word in the search box and press enter. If you still have Map Term to Subject Heading ticked you will get a page with different options to search. Choose the bottom option to just search for the keyword. If you unticked the box then you will see the results of your search straight away. 

A record of what you have searched will go into your Search History at the top of the page.

You can get more information about searching with keywords from our online tutorials.