Database Alerts & Instructions
Alerts are a database feature which you can use to receive notification of new articles added to the database based upon criteria you establish. Types of Alerts are described below.
Author Alerts
Once you have identified authors important to your research, use their name to create an Alert and be notified when new material is published by that person. Author Alerts can be setup at a publisher website or in a subject database. Because authors publish in many different journals, you may wish to consider setting up alerts for an author at both types of sites. Google Scholar is an option for this type of Alert as well.
Cited Reference Alerts
Once you have identified a key publication, use its citation information to setup an Alert in order to be notified when that work is cited by new journal articles. This can be done in the Web of Science and Scopus databases, and Google Scholar.
Journal Alerts
Identify key journals, then setup Alerts to be notified when new issues are published. These can be established from publisher websites or, if the publisher does not offer that feature, from subject databases that include the journal.
Search Alerts
Once you have a successful search statement that produces focused, accurate results in a database, save that search to be used as an Alert. Set up the search to be run automatically on a regular schedule and you will receive an email when new material matching your search criteria are added to the database. Using the Advanced Search feature of Google Scholar is also an option for establishing a Search Alert.
In EBSCO databases you will need to establish an account to save and update Alerts. Use the SIGN IN option on the menu located on the top, right-hand side of the screen.
To setup Alerts use EBSCO Help accessible from the menu on the top right-hand side of the screen
Once in EBSCO HELP search the term ALERTS. The most relevant articles are highlighted in the illustration below but feel free to explore.
To identify EBSCO databases in your subject area, from the A-Z Database list use the VENDOR filter on the right-hand side of the screen
Combine that vendor listing with a selection from the SUBJECT filter.
In ProQuest databases set up a MySearch account to save and update your Alerts. Use the Person icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
For more information on how to setup alerts, use PROQUEST HELP accessible from the Question Mark icon in the same toolbar and search for ALERTS.
To identify ProQuest databases in your subject area, from the A-Z Database list use the VENDOR filter on the right-hand side of the screen
Combine that vendor listing with one or more selections from the SUBJECT filter.
These are some, but perhaps not all, of the databases that provide Alert services which come from vendors other than EBSCO or ProQuest.
- Annual Reviews This link opens in a new windowThe Annual Reviews provide substantially researched articles written by recognized scholars in a wide variety of disciplines that summarize the major research literature in the field. RSS Feeds, Cited Articles & Saved Searches instructions
- Project Muse This link opens in a new windowSearchable database that provides access to the content of journals and ebooks published from over 200 of the world’s most distinguished university presses and scholarly societies. Covers literature and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies, education, political science, gender studies, and others. Sign up for Alerts.
- ScienceDirect This link opens in a new windowContains the full text of more than 1000 Elsevier Science journals in the life, physical, medical, technical, and social sciences. Create an account/sign in to view Alerts instructions.
- Scopus This link opens in a new windowScopus Alerts Information highlighted on the database landing page.
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database, including peer-reviewed titles from international publishers, Open Access journals, conference proceedings, trade publications, quality web sources. Subject coverage : Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Engineering ; Life and Health Sciences ; Social Sciences, Psychology and Economics ; Biological, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. - Web of Science This link opens in a new windowInstructions for creating Alerts in the Web of Science database that indexes >10,000 journals in the social sciences, arts & humanities, and sciences. Examples included
Journal Alerts
Considerations:
- Can be established through many, but not all, publisher websites and through NU Libraries subscription databases.
- Those publishers which provide Alerts services require that you register for an account to create and manage Alerts.
- Alerts setup through publisher websites are likely to be sent earlier than those setup through a subscription database.
- Publishers generate article and journal issue information and share with database vendors which have weekly or monthly update schedules.
- You can setup Alerts for a journal through its publisher whether or not NU Libraries subscribe to that journal. If, of course, the publisher offers an Alert function through their website.
Selecting Alert Source for a Journal
Search for journal title in NUSearch. If there are multiple content options for the journal, as shown in the image below, look to see whether NU subscribes directly from the publisher.
Does NU access the journal's articles through an aggregator database rather than directly from the journal publisher? For the journal Sexuality & Culture in the image below, use the EbscoHOST Alerts instructions to establish an Alert for this journal using the EBSCO Academic Search Complete database.
Alerts Through Publisher Websites
Publishers that provide Alerts functions will do so in different ways. Try one or more of these strategies to find their "How To's".
1) Look for the online HELP at the publisher website (it may be linked in the website header or footer) and search to find their procedures.
2) If you have gotten to a journal page within a publisher's website, log into (or create) your account, then look for Alerts/RSS options
3) The Alert options for a publication put out by SAGE are also tied to a personal account, as made clear on this pop-up that appears when you click the LOG-IN option on a journal webpage or the publisher website.
Google Scholar provides an option to establish a search alert as highlighted in the image below.
You can review Alerts in your account from the Alerts menu, found using the 'hamburger' icon (3 horizontal lines) at the top left of the screen
The Alerts menu in a personal Google Scholar account where you can create new, or delete existing, Alerts.
Use the ADVANCED search option within Google Scholar to improve the focus of your search results when creating a Search Alert. In the example search below, as many relevant synonyms were included as possible while the publication title is in quotation marks to ensure exact match.
Oddly enough, there are two journals with this same title put out by different publishers. Searching Google Scholar for "New Media and Society" produced dramatically different results than having "New Media & Society" in the box labeled, Return articles published in. Be sure to test your searches when setting up an Alert!
