Library: Sport and Exercise: Databases, journals and articles

Databases

Subject specific databases:

Databases are one of the best types of resource to get familiar with. The term ‘database’ describes a searchable collections of online resources such as journal articles. Using the databases recommended for your subject will help you find good quality information.

Anatomy TV
Anatomy TV is an interactive educational resource on human anatomy. It provides interactive 3D models as well as text, slides and video clips.
- Diseases & Conditions: Search by speciality or A-Z index.
- 3D Atlas: 3D views; MRI images; anatomy, dissection and clinical slides; biomechanics animations.
- 3D Real-time: 3D interactive models, reconstructed from real human data, that can be rotated, zoomed and panned 360 degrees to view from any angle.
- Functional Anatomy and Therapy: A kinesiology resource depicting anatomical movement, function and exercise performance.
- Anatomy and Physiology: Interactive models and animations, as well as case studies, clinical content and quizzing.
- Quizzing: Self-assessment tool.
- Imaging: Cross-sectional slices of real anatomy including the upper and lower limb, thorax, abdomen and pelvis.
- Clinical Specialities: In-depth visuals and knowledge for a given specialty.
Quickstart Guide to 3D Anatomy and Physiology
(Source: Primal Pictures, 2025)
ScienceDirect - Elsevier
ScienceDirect is a leading database of peer-reviewed science, technology and health information trusted by researchers, teachers and students around the globe.
Link: https://auth.elsevier.com/ShibAuth/institutionLogin?entityID=https%3A%2F%2Fshibboleth.staffs.ac.uk%2Fidp%2Fshibboleth&appReturnURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciencedirect.com/science/search
Alternative Link: Back up Login link
ScienceDirect Freedom Collection (pre-2000 subscribers):2012-2016:Year 3 - NESLi2
Scopus
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature: scientific journals, books and conference proceedings. Delivering a comprehensive overview of the world's research output in the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities, Scopus features smart tools to track, analyze and visualize research.

Note: Please register for an individual account, as this gives you access to more personalised features including permissions to save and download searches.
SPORTDiscus with Full Text
SPORTDiscus with Full text is the definitive database for sports and sports medicine research. Providing hundreds of full-text sports medicine journals, it is an essential tool for health professionals and researchers studying fitness, health and sports.

*Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
- 451 active full-text journals and magazines
- Unique full-text journals - includes 372 journals not available in any other version of academic search
- Searchable cited references
Subjects covered in the database are:
- Athletic training
- Coaching and education
- Exercise science and fitness
- Health education
- Kinesiology
- Nutrition
- Occupational health and safety
- Orthopedics
- Physical education
- Physical therapy
- Sociology of sports
- Sport psychology
- Sports injuries and rehabilitation
- Sports management
- Sports sciences

Other recommended databases for your subject area:

Business Source Complete
Many full text articles covering all areas of business.

*Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
Login link: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=shib&custid=s7383539&profile=ehost&defaultdb=bth

Alternative link: http://ezproxy.staffs.ac.uk/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&profile=ehost&defaultdb=bth
CINAHL Plus with Full Text
Full text of nursing and allied health journals indexed in the CINAHL database dating back to 1937 and expanded content.

*Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
CINAHL Plus covers a wide range of topics including nursing, biomedicine, health sciences librarianship, alternative/complementary medicine, consumer health and 17 allied health disciplines. In addition, this database provides access to health care books, nursing dissertations, selected conference proceedings, standards of practice, audiovisuals, book chapters and more.
- More than 5,600 journals
- Basic and advanced search, including searchable cited references
- Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Cochrane Library
The Cochrane Library is a collection of databases that contain high-quality, independent evidence to inform healthcare decision-making. This includes the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) which is the leading resource for systematic reviews in health care.
Databases:
- The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) includes peer-reviewed systematic reviews (Cochrane reviews) and protocols for Cochrane reviews.
- The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) is a source for reports for ranomised control trials. Records often include an abstract - they do not contain the full text.
- Cochrane Clinical Answers (CCAs) provides a clinically focused entry point to rigorous research from Cochrane reviews. Each CCA contains a clinical question, a short answer, and data for the outcomes most relevant to practicing healthcare professionals.
An Introduction to the Cochrane Library
(Source: Wiley, 2025)
Kanopy
Kanopy is an on-demand streaming video platform that offers films and documentaries. Find movies, documentaries, foreign films, classic cinema, independent films and educational videos.

Login information:

- On the Kanopy page click the large orange "Log In to Staffs" button.

- On the page that follows, click on "Log In to Staffs" one more time.

- If prompted login with your normal credentials

If viewing via a mobile or tablet after you will need to create a Kanopy account and download the Kanopy App. Please see the information provided here: https://help.kanopy.com/en-us/4213.htm (link opens in new window)
MEDLINE
(Not Full Text) MEDLINE® contains journal citations and abstracts for biomedical literature from around the world.

For details of the current access problems with Medline and a workaround, please see our
eresource access problem guide

*Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
Medline is the National Library of Medicine's (NLM) premier bibliographic database:
- includes citations from more than 4,200 journals worldwide
- includes literature published from 1966 onwards
- records are indexed with NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Subject coverage:
- Biomedicine and health - life sciences, behavioral sciences, chemical sciences, and bioengineering
- Life sciences - biology, environmental science, marine biology, plant and animal science as well as biophysics and chemistry.
Newspapers - Global Newsstream
Global Newsstream enables users to search the most recent global news content, as well as archives which stretch back into the 1980s featuring content from newspapers, newswires, and news sites in active full-text format. This product provides one of the largest collections of news from the US, Canada, Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. All titles are cross-searchable on the ProQuest platform allowing researchers easy access to multiple perspectives, resources, and languages on the topic they are researching.
Coverage: 1980 - current
Included databases (full-text for certain publications is subject to availability):
- European Newsstream - access to a range of national and regional newspapers, magazines and trade journals from the UK and Europe.
  - Newspapers include: The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, The Financial Times, The Independent, The Observer, The Times
  - Magazines include: The New Statesman, The Spectator, Telepgraph Magazine
  - Trade journals include: The Grocer, Utility Week
- U.S. Newsstream Collection - the most recent premium U.S. news content, as well as archives, including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and The Wall Street Journal.
- Canadian Newsstream Collection - access to the full text of over 400 Canadian news sources from Canada's leading publishers.
- International Newsstream Collection - information from more than 660 of the world's top newspapers.
- Global Breaking Newswires - access to the best newswire content available from around the globe, as well as growing archive of news that may not be captured in any of the traditional print sources.
PsycARTICLES
Covers psychology and the psychological aspects of related disciplines.

*Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
This esteemed collection from American Psychological Association (APA) provides access to the full spectrum of study in the field — including cutting-edge research from preeminent scholars, to the historical underpinnings of the behavioral and social sciences.
- Twice weekly updates
- Journals published by the APA, the Canadian Psychological Association, the Hogrefe Publishing Group, the Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice, and more
- More than 237,000 full-text articles from nearly 120 journals, each employing a meticulous peer-review process
- Coverage for most journals dating back from Volume 1, Issue 1
- Articles in PDF or HTML formats for easy navigation and downloading
PsycINFO 1887-Current
Abstract and index database for the Psychology subject (not fulltext)

** Please Note if the above link is not working try this alternative link
(however the alternative link will not give you access to your saved searches)
The APA PsycInfo database is a finding and linking database that contains abstracts, bibliographic citations, references, and other descriptive information. It is not a full-text database..
Subject areas include: Artificial Intelligence, Business, Education, Law, Linguistics, Medicine, Neuroscience, Pharmacology, Political science, Social work, Sociology and Sports.
- Over 5,000,000 peer-reviewed records
- 144 million cited references
- Spanning 600 years of content
- Updated twice-weekly
- Research in 30 languages from 50 countries
- Records from 2,400 journals
- Content from journal articles, book chapters, and dissertations
- AI and machine learning-powered research assistance
PubMed Central
PubMed Central® (PMC) is a free full-text archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM).
The PMC Journal List contains journals that:
- have an agreement with NLM to make the final published version of all their articles, or all their NIH-funded articles, available in PMC.
- are historically-significant journals from the Biomedical Journal Digitization project.
ScienceDirect - Elsevier
ScienceDirect is a leading database of peer-reviewed science, technology and health information trusted by researchers, teachers and students around the globe.
Link: https://auth.elsevier.com/ShibAuth/institutionLogin?entityID=https%3A%2F%2Fshibboleth.staffs.ac.uk%2Fidp%2Fshibboleth&appReturnURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciencedirect.com/science/search
Alternative Link: Back up Login link
ScienceDirect Freedom Collection (pre-2000 subscribers):2012-2016:Year 3 - NESLi2
Scopus
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature: scientific journals, books and conference proceedings. Delivering a comprehensive overview of the world's research output in the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities, Scopus features smart tools to track, analyze and visualize research.

Note: Please register for an individual account, as this gives you access to more personalised features including permissions to save and download searches.

The A-Z databases list provides access to all of our subscription Library databases and to selected Open Access resources.

Journals and articles

As a student in higher education your tutors will be looking for evidence that you have used a wide range of resources in your studies. Journals are one such resource. They can provide up to date, specialised information on topics which are not always found in books.

Most journals that we subscribe to are available electronically, although we have a small reference only collection of printed journals.

To check if we have access to a specific journal (or to find journals related to a subject) you can use Journal title search. From here you can use Search inside to search for articles within that journal.

In addition to using the key databases, you can also search for journal articles using Library Search (you can also select the Searching for information tab from the contents list of this page). To find the articles available on the subject you are looking for, refine your search by selecting Journal articles from the Content type options.

British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM)
British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM) is a multi-media portal that provides original research, reviews and debate relating to clinically-relevant aspects of sport and exercise medicine, including physiotherapy, physical therapy and rehabilitation.
International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance
The International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance (IJSPP) focuses on sport physiology and performance and is dedicated to advancing the knowledge of sport and exercise physiologists, sport-performance researchers, and other sport scientists.
International Journal of Sport Policy
Publishes research on sport policy and politics, their critical analysis, impact, political significance & involvement of government in such policies and more.
International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology
International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology (IRSEP) is the first scholarly, peer-reviewed journal that publishes critical reviews of research literature in sport and exercise psychology.

A-Z lists of journals related to sport and exercise:

Can't find the journal article that you are looking for?

Sometimes when doing research you come across an article in a journal that you are unable to access. This is usually because the Library does not subscribe to that title and it is not available through Open Access.

You can usually order copies of journal articles that are not included in our subscriptions through our Request a Digital Copy service or via our Document Delivery service.

What is a journal article... and why do I need to use them?

Find out what a journal article is, what they are for and how you can use them to support your academic work. When you have watched this video, watch How to read a journal article to learn how to make sense of academic articles so you can use them to best effect in your assignments.

To access a transcript for this video please view it using the Watch on YouTube option.

How to search for a subject term in an ebook