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English 114 (Professional Research and Reporting) Research Guide

 

Types of Resources

Books

Books are written or printed works produced by one or more authors. Individuals or committees with expertise in the field often edit books. Because they provide comprehensive information on their subject at the time of publication, books are very valuable in the research process. For many subject areas this is the best starting point for research. Many books contain valuable bibliographies at the end of each chapter or at the close of the book. This provides an excellent entry point into the subject material as well to the authors publishing in a particular field of study.

The Craft of Composition: Activities and Advice for College Writers PE 1413 .K44

Databases

Online information databases are large, regularly updated collections of digitized information -- including but not limited to abstracts and full text articles from journals and newspapers, conference proceedings and submitted papers, dissertations, government reports, essays, book chapters, web pages, etc. The content is created by publishers who release print versions, then lease the rights to their information to database vendors. Database records are easy to search and retrieve because the content of each record has been analyzed and assigned appropriate subject headings, keywords, names, etc. New records are regularly downloaded from the producer of each database.

In order to access these resources off-campus, you must first obtain the passwords.

If you are looking for a specific journal within a database, use the E-Journal Portal. It returns the names of databases which contain the desired journal.

Dictionaries

A dictionary is any single or multi-volume work which briefly explains terms and topics related to a specific subject, usually arranged alphabetically. Dictionary entries are usually shorter than those found in an encyclopedia. Dictionaries assist with the understanding of terminology and concepts, suggest synonyms, related terms, and scientific names, and are useful resources to consult when formulating and refining your research strategy. Often illustrations and references to additional resources are included.

In Print

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language REF PE 1628 .A623
Beginner's Dictionary of American English Usage REF PE 2827 .C65
Bernstein's Reverse Dictionary REF PE 1591 .B45
Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases REF PE 1591 .R7
Thematic Dictionary of American Idioms REF PE 2839 . S66

Online

Encyclopedias

Encyclopedias are among the most widely used reference sources and contain articles of varying lengths covering all fields of knowledge. Typically encyclopedias cover many topics but without going into a great deal of depth on any one thing. Encyclopedias are a good starting point for researching topics that you do not know much about or that are completely new to you. They can give you background information which can help when you move to more in-depth sources later. Specialized encyclopedias may cover just one field or even a sub-unit of that field. Subject encyclopedias can be consulted for detailed or technical information on a subject.

Online

Journals

Journals are scholarly periodicals which publish current research and commentary on their specific field of study. Most scholarly journals are peer-reviewed which means they have been reviewed and verified by a panel of experts in the field.

Online

Web Sites