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APA PsycInfo on Ovid - Database Content and Display

How to retrieve and display a single article reference, cited in two different databases, APA PsycInfo on Ovid and Ovid MEDLINE, in order to compare the content and format of the database record for the respective resource.

Databases – Combinations

Ovid Training Team

2025-03-14

36 visits

Background

APA PsycInfo describes itself as "(T)he premier abstracting and indexiing database covering the behavioral and social sciences from the authority in psychology". (1) A resource produced and made available by the American Psychological Association (APA), APA PsycInfo, along with Ovid MEDLINE and Embase on Ovid, constitute, in their respective fields, the largest and most comprehensive Abstracting and Indexing (A&I) databases for peer-reviewed scientific information. 

APA PsycInfo on Ovid – Facts and Figures (1)

  • A bibliographic database, APA PsycInfo is made up of over 5.7 million database records.
  • Within these database records are some 144 million cited references.
  • The database records are derived from 2,400 journals.
  • Database records are indexed using the APA Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms (R).
  • Content includes not only journal articles but also book chapters and dissertations.
  • Spanning 600 years of content, the database is updated twice weekly.
  • Additional topics related to psychology, also covered range from AI to education, medicine and sports.

Training Session Programme

This Learning Pathway series of training modules draws upon the content and teaching approaches in and behind the learning resource OvidGO! (2). Constructed around a selection of focused searches, the training programme has been designed to achieve the following two objectives,

  1. to introduce the database, APA PsycInfo on Ovid, drawing upon where helpful, parallels and comparisons with Ovid MEDLINE,
  2. to discuss, demonstrate and practice the key features and functionality of the database APA PsycInfo on Ovid. 

(1). See https://www.apa.org/pubs/databases/psycinfo/index
(2). See https://tools.ovid.com/ovidgo/       

This focused search, conducted across two databases (APA PsycInfo on Ovid and Ovid MEDLINE) in a single session, retrieves two versions of the same article. One version is from APA PsycInfo on Ovid, the other from Ovid MEDLINE. By comparing these two versions (it is suggested in two different browser windows) you will be able to compare the similarities and differences in the respective displays of each of the records.

Points to note:

  • There are a range of similarities and differences between A&I bibliographic databases.
  • Similarities include the way in which the records are constructed, editorial processes, the use of controlled vocabularies for indexing, limits, author keyword inclusion, how the records may be searched and how the results are displayed.
  • However, differences may also be evident in these very areas, i.e. in way in which the records are constructed, editorial processes, the use of controlled vocabularies for indexing, author keyword inclusion, how the records may be searched and how the results are displayed etc.
  • An awareness of the similarities and differences between A&I bibliographic databases will make for a better understanding of them and help in the construction of search strategies.

Instructions:

  1. Logon to Ovid, select APA PsycInfo <1806 to Present> and Ovid MEDLINE <1946 to Present>.
  2. Select the Advanced Search / Title mode.
  3. Enter the article title as the search for this focused search as listed below.
  4. Alternatively, having not yet logged on,  <Click here> to run this focused search above in Ovid.

"Everything has its price: Foundations of cost-sensitive machine learning and its application in psychology."

which yields...

"Everything has its price: Foundations of cost-sensitive machine learning and its application in psychology.".m_titl.

Practice Suggestions

  1. Do both versions display the same Keyword Headings? If so, why is this the case?
  2. How many major topics are listed in each of the two bibliographic records?
  3. You want to send an e-mail to the corresponding author. Which record provides the relevant information?

Search Stategy

"Everything has its price: Foundations of cost-sensitive machine learning and its application in psychology.".m_titl.

Launch Search

Reviewers

Primary: Michael Fanning

Secondary: Charlotte Viken

Review Date: 2025-03-14

Expiry Date: 2026-03-14

Original search produced by:

Ovid Training Team

Citation:

OvidGO! Portal. Focused Searches: APA PsycInfo on Ovid - Database Content and Display [Internet]. London (UK): Ovid Training Team (Editors); 2025 [updated 2 March 2024; cited 10 March 2025]. Available from: https://tools.ovid.com/ovidgo/searches/view.php?id=111