Los Angeles Valley College Library: Business Research Guide : Find Sources

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Also known as "Scholarly Articles," "Peer-Reviewed Articles," or "Academic Articles," these are:

Written and reviewed by scholars and provide new research, analysis, or information about a specific topic.
- "Review" means the article is approved by other experts before publication
Usually focused on a narrow subject or a single case study
Intended for an academic audience

Find Business Articles:

Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new window
International business coverage including case studies, statistical data coupled with research, and the ability to compare global economies, countries and industries.
Business Source Elite This link opens in a new window
Full-text access for more than1,000 business publications dating back to 1985. More than 10,100 company profiles from Datamonitor are also included.
Accounting, Tax & Banking Collection (Proquest) This link opens in a new window
Provides highly ranked global and scholarly journals with other key resources for locating quick and precise results covering current news and topics, as well as the trends and history influencing important financial issues of the day.

Full list of Business databases

bookshelves filled with books While there are numerous books you could find on Amazon.com related to the topic of business, it's important to distinguish between popular business books, such as self-help manuals or personal business philosophy treatises, and academic business books, which are written by one or more experts or scholars with academic credentials in the field of business.

Here are some key features of academic books that can help you distinguish them from popular books.

Features of Academic Books

Are written by experts with academic degrees (not celebrities or famous CEOs)
Are published by universities or academic publishers
May contain a collection of related chapters by different authors
Contain numerous citations and references
Analyze a topic or concept in depth, rather than just introducing it
Do not attempt to sell a product or strategy
Often do not contain decorative images (but do contain charts and graphs)

For help distinguishing whether a book is academic or popular, talk to your professor or librarian.

Find Books & eBooks:

OneSearch This link opens in a new window
OneSearch is the Library's "discovery" platform. It searches our collection of print books and provides access to ebooks and articles from select databases.

List of eBook databases

Market research involves gathering and analyzing information about a market, industry, consumer group, or product. Market research reports can help businesses: Effectively launch new products or services, analyze the competition, determine what customers want or need, test new concepts, and examine responses to marketing campaigns.

Industry reports (sometimes called industry profiles) contain useful information about specific industries, including: Industry activities (What does the industry produce? Who are their consumers?), major companies involved, current conditions and trends, projections for the future, government and legislative issues, and news.

Company profiles can contain lots of information about specific companies, including: What the company does and where it's located, information about executives, a short history of the company, lists of competitors, financial information, current revenue/sales figures, old financial statements, and industry information.

Find Market Research, Industry Reports, and Company Profiles:

Business Market Research Collection (Proquest) This link opens in a new window
Company, industry, economic and geopolitical market research with information from Hoover's Company Profiles, OxResearch, US and Worldwide Industry & Market Reports from Barnes Report, and Snapshots.
Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new window
International business coverage including case studies, statistical data coupled with research, and the ability to compare global economies, countries and industries.
Business Source Elite This link opens in a new window
Full-text access for more than1,000 business publications dating back to 1985. More than 10,100 company profiles from Datamonitor are also included.
Lexis Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
News, business, and legal sources—including federal and state cases and statutes; with U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790.

Find NAICS Codes
Use the search boxes on the left to find the NAICS code for an industry. You may need to try variant keywords (e.g., shoes, footwear). Ask a librarian if you need help.

Newspaper stand on a city street Keeping up with business news is important to stay informed on industry changes, company news, and other important factors that impact your research. Two of the most popular/trusted sources for business-related news are the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times.

Key Features of News Sources:

Intended for a general audience; commonly written at about an 8th-grade reading level
Reviewed by one or more editors for quality and accuracy
Provide information on a recent event or topic of interest
Provide the perspectives of average people, not experts

IMPORTANT NOTE: Not all news sources are created equal! Some have hidden (or obvious) motives or political beliefs. When in doubt, do some background research into who owns the news organization to learn more about it and its agenda.

Find News Sources:

U.S. Newsstream This link opens in a new window
Full-text access to nearly 1,000 news outlets, including exclusive access to the Los Angeles Times (1985 to current), New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and The Wall Street Journal. US Newsstream offers one of the largest collections of local and regional newspapers.
Newspaper Source Plus (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Includes more than 860 full-text newspapers, providing more than 35 million full-text articles. In addition, the database features more than 857,000 television and radio news transcripts.
Lexis Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
News, business, and legal sources—including federal and state cases and statutes; with U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790.

Full list of News databases

stack of magazines on a desk There are a large number of popular business-related magazines geared toward industry professionals. Examples include Forbes, Fortune, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, and Industry Week. While the content of these magazines is not scholarly like academic articles or guaranteed to be written by professionals like trade journals, it can still be useful to regularly peruse respected business magazines.

Features of Popular Business Magazines

Written by journalists, not academics or professionals
Intended to entertain and inform
Offers broad overview of industry trends or news in the field
Contains advice, opinions, or subjective coverage of topics
May feature human interest content, such as interviews

Find Business Magazines:

Business Source Elite This link opens in a new window
Full-text access for more than1,000 business publications dating back to 1985. More than 10,100 company profiles from Datamonitor are also included.
Popular Magazines This link opens in a new window
Full-text articles from more than 1,000 magazines with a strong focus on current events, sports, science and health.
Career & Technical Education Database (Proquest) This link opens in a new window
Provides access to magazines and journals covering vocational/technical topics. Industries covered include computer science, healthcare, building trades, auto mechanics, sales and retail, accounting, graphic design, photography, and more.
Lexis Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
News, business, and legal sources—including federal and state cases and statutes; with U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790.

Business Research Guide

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