Political Science Graduate Students: Research Sources
Purpose: To acquaint you with materials available through Cornette Library that will make your literature research easier.
Reference Sources
- Excellent place to start research.
- Provide background information.
- Include basic information sources like dictionaries, encyclopedias, bibliographies, chronologies, and research guides.
General Sources
- Research Methods for Political Science: Quantitative and Qualitative Methods
- JA 71.5 .M35 2004 (Reference)
- Dictionary of Government and Politics
- JA 61 .D53 1998 (Reference)
- Dictionary of Politics: Selected American and Foreign Political and Legal Terms
- JA 61 .R39 1992 (Reference)
- The Public Policy Dictionary
- H 97 .K78 1987 (Reference)
- Encyclopedia of American Political History: studies of the Principal Movements and Ideas
- E 183 .E5 1984 (Reference)
- Information Sources of Political Science
- Z 7161 .H64 1986 (Reference)
- Municipal Year Book
- JS 342 .A2 I52 (Reference)
- Annual publication.
- Congress and the Nation
- KF 49 .C65 (Reference)
- Published every four years.
- Statistical Abstract of the United States
- HA 202 .A2 (Reference)
- Annual publication. Most recent kept at the Reference Desk.
- Statistical Yearbook (United Nations)
- HA12.5 .U63 (Reference)
- Provides statistics by country, continent and globally. From 1948-2006
- United States Government Manual
- JK 421 .A3 (Reference)
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Books
- Cornette Library's online catalog
- Includes books, government documents, videos, journal titles, etc. available throughout the Library. Suggested searches include:
- a keyword search for your subject, such as election polling or public health policy economics.
- the general LC subject heading polling places or medical policy.
- the LC subject heading for a specific time and place such as polling places United States management.
To determine the most appropriate subject headings for your search, refer to the red Library of Congress Subject Headings near the Reference computers in the Library or search the online Library of Congress Authorities Catalog.
- WorldCat
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- Online catalog for libraries around the world.
- Lists Cornette Library books along with many more in other libraries.
- Search by keyword, author, title, or subject.
- Request books not in Cornette Library through the pre-filled Interlibrary loan form. Allow at least two weeks for the books to arrive.
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Journal, Magazine, & Newspaper Articles
Provide current information
- Library shelves contain more than 1500 bound and current journals.
- Microform (film or fiche) available for dozens of leading newspapers, as well as other periodicals.
- Databases index articles found in journals and magazines.
- Citation only;
- Citation and a short summary of the article (abstract);
- Full text;
- General, covering many kinds of topics, and specialized, for specific disciplines.
- Be sure to use scholarly sources, not general interest magazines. The differences are important, for citation and for evaluating reliability.
How to Access Databases
- On-campus: In the library or HELC.
- Off-campus: Login with your Buff Advisor username (for example, js123456) and your Buff Advisor password (for example, buffaloes).
- Database citations not in full-text may be located in Cornette Library's online catalog, or the list of online journals.
- Use Interlibrary Loan to request articles inaccessible through Cornette library (ILL FAQs). Allow up to 1 week (3 weeks for books) for articles to arrive.
Which database?
- Academic Search Complete
- Contains abstracts and citations for a broad range of topics, with substantial full-text and links to full-text.
- Public Administration Abstracts
- Contains citations and abstracts in the area of public administration, with substantial full-text and links to full-text.
- Web of Science
- Contains Social Sciences Citation Index. Uses SFX to link to full-text in other databases. Use related records feature to identify cross-disciplinary issues. Creating a personalized login provides access to EndNotes for citation storage and management, as well as search and citation alerts.
- Digital Dissertations
- Citations for dissertations from 1861. Full-text available from about 1997. May be a good source for literature reviews, and very focused research.
- Subject Guides
- Find recommendations for other databases with material on the subject.
Logo
- Displays in most of our databases. Links from a citation to one or more of the following:
- One or more links to full-text of the cited article,
- A link to a pre-set search of the Cornette Library catalog for the cited item,
- A link to a pre-filled Interlibrary Loan request form for the article, or
- A link to various help options.
- For more information see the tutorial Using SFX to Link to Articles
Need Help?
- Ask at the Reference Desk (first floor) or Periodicals Desk (second floor).
- Call 651-2215 during the hours Cornette Library is open.
- Use the "Ask A Librarian" page for electronic reference support.
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Government Documents
Cornette Library collects United States federal and Texas state documents on many topics.
- Most U.S. documents published since 1994 are listed in the Cornette Library's online catalog.
- For older documents, you will need to use the Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications.
Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications
- Indexes all United States government documents made available through the Government Printing Office.
- Includes Congressional reports, hearings, debates, and records; judiciary materials; documents issued by executive departments (Defense, State, Labor, Office of the President, etc.).
- Dates available include:
- Documents/Reference (1913-present).
- Online via FirstSearch. (1976-present)
World Wide Web
- The World Wide Web is an excellent source of information.
- Not everything found on the Web is accurate.
- You must evaluate information on the Web.
Political Science
Web Guides
- Searchable lists of annotated web sites, discussion lists, and electronic journals that have met specific selection criteria.
- Scout Report Archives
- Scholarly. Keyword or advanced search. Results listed by relevance.
- INFOMINE Scholarly Internet Resource Collections
- Scholarly. Keyword search or browse by general subject area. Can limit to free sites.
- ipl2 - "Information You Can Trust" (merger of Internet Public Library and Librarians' Index to the Internet)
- General public interest. Keyword search, or browse by general topic and subtopic.
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Citing Your Sources
Why must I cite the sources I use for research projects?
- To give credit to the author of the information you use.
- To avoid plagiarism (WTAMU Code of Student Life: Appendix I-Academic Integrity Code). Plagiarism is a serious offense that can result in a failing grade or worse!
- So that others can verify the information.
- To assist others in doing their own research.
- You will most likely be using the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.
- Copies of both the 5th and 6th edition of this manual are located at the Reference Desk.
- Additional assistance is available from our Citation Basics web page and from our more detailed page of recommended web sites for citing sources.
Your Comments
- Suggestions for improvements?
- Particularly helpful items?
- Please email Linda Chenoweth.
Thank you.
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