Sometimes you just need to define a term or learn the basics to write about it in your assignment. There are a few ways to do this.
Credo Reference is a library database made up of dictionaries and encyclopedias on every topic. Searching there will give you short entries with basic information.
If your instructor has asked you to use only scholarly and/or peer reviewed articles, an encyclopedia entry may not be appropriate for the assignment. In that case, go back to the articles you found and look for an explanation of the topic in the introduction or literature review sections. Sometimes you can find just the right information in the first paragraph regardless of how long or complicated the rest of the article is. You can use that information and cite that source even if you never read the rest of it.
