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Usually focused on a particular subject, annuals, atlases, and yearbooks present data and statistics from a given year. Their primary purpose is to compile the year's activities into an arrangement by country, subject or specialized area. Annuals and yearbooks are usually located in the Reference Collection of the Library.
| Annual Review of Psychology | BF 30 .A56 |
| Women in Psychology: A Bio-Bibliographic Sourcebook | BF 109.A1.W65 |
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.
In general, the “B” section—philosophy, psychology, and religion—contains books of interest in this field, but there are several specific subject prefixes listed below.
| B | Philosophy (General) |
| BF | Psychology |
| BH | Aesthetics |
| BJ | Ethics |
| BL | Religions. Mythology. Rationalism. |
Critical Surveys are attempts to “survey” the field of literature for a particular time and place, with attention to high, and even low, points. Such surveys discuss the works of authors who are considered to be the most important, exemplary of the era, widely read, and or critically regarded. Surveys include information on literary forms and styles of the era. Literary Histories describe the significant literary events of each period or era.
| Comparative Psychology: a Modern Survey | QL 751.D453 |
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.
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.
| Biographical Dictionary of Psychology | REF BF 109 .A1 B56 |
| The Oxford Companion to the Mind | REF BF 31 .O94 |
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.
| The Encyclopedia of Aging | REF HQ 1061 .E53 |
| Encyclopedia of Criminology and Deviant Behavior | REF HV 6017.E53 |
| Encyclopedia of Human Behavior; four volumes. | REF BF 31 .E5 |
| Encyclopedia of Human Intelligence; two volumes. | REF BF 431 .E59 |
| Encyclopedia of Psychology; eight volumes. | REF BF 31 .E52 |
| The Gale Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence | REF HQ 772 .G27 |
| Violence In America: An Encyclopedia; three volumes. | REF HN 90.V5.V5474 |
Handbooks, manuals and guides are resources which supply concise factual and statistical information, often in the form of charts, graphs, tables and formulas. These sources have very basic information, with little or no discussion or analysis of the facts they present. They cover a wide variety of topics, and as with other reference sources, these tools may be general or specific to a field, group of people, or era. These sources are frequently updated, which makes them valuable for locating current information. Try searching the online catalog using the keywords of your topic combined with one of the following keywords: handbook, manual or guide.
| Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders | REF RC 455.2.C4.D54 |
| Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Sourcebook | REF RC 455.2.C4.D754 |
| Handbook Of Adolescent Psychology | BF 724 .L367 |
| Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology; four volumes. | REF HF 5548.8 .H265 |
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.