Open Access refers to journals and scholarly information available digitally for free on the Internet with no licensing or copyright restrictions. There are various levels of open access available. Some journal articles are available free to anyone at the time of publication. Publishers may have the option to restrict access to some journal articles for a few months up to a few years before allowing the article to become open and posted to the web without restrictions.
After leaving the educational setting, many social workers find that their access to research literature is severely diminished. Therefore, building awareness of open access resources among social work students is important. Access to research is a key component to ongoing professional development and evidence-based practice.
Current Page Editor: Jessica Rardin (jessica.rardin@uwyo.edu)
