LAC 370E - Ethics and the Organization

Introduction | Reference Sources | Indexes & Databases | Internet Resources | Writing the Paper

For further research assistance, please contact Maureen Perry (mperry@usm.maine.edu; 753-6546), Social and Behavioral Sciences Liaison at Lewiston-Auburn College Library, University of Southern Maine.

In order to find books and other background materials, you will need to consult URSUS, the University of Maine System online catalog. Because journal article citations are not individually included in URSUS, you will need to use a discipline-specific index to find this information (see Resources by Subject).

If you do not know the exact subject heading describing the topic you need, try doing a keyword search using other word/s related to that topic and then click on the subject heading links found within the relevant records to find additional, useful resources.

The following are a listing of URSUS related subject headings:

Applied ethics

Business ethics

Clergy--United States--professional ethics

Conflict of interests

Decision making moral & ethical aspects

Military ethics

Nursing ethics

Police ethics

Political ethics

Professional ethics

Situation ethics

Student ethics

To obtain materials not located at your USM campus, but within URSUS, you will need to click on the Request button on the URSUS screen and enter your name and barcode number (found under the barcode on your USM Card, always beginning with 25022....). Your barcode will first need to be activated at the Circulation Desk.

If the item is not available through the University of Maine System (URSUS) or Maine InfoNet you can request it via Interlibrary Loan (Illiad).

To seek articles on ethics in a particular profession, you can refer to journals from that profession. Here are selected print journals available at the USM Libraries

Academy of Management Executive
POR Serials 1994-2000, LEW Serials 1997-

Academy of Management Journal
LEW Serials 1996-, POR Serials (Select holdings 1972-2000) 2001-

Academy of Management Review
LEW Serials 1997-, POR Serials (Select holdings 1976-1989) 1990-

American Journal of Occupational Therapy
LEW Serials 1976-

American Journal of Public Health
LEW Serials 1988-, POR Serials 1969-2002

Business and Society
POR Serials 1985-2998

Business Communication Quarterly
POR Serials 1995-

Journal of Counseling and Development
GOR Serials 1984-2004, LEW Serials 1990-

Journal of the American Medical Association
POR Serials 1935-, LEW Serials 1986-

Western Journal of Nursing Research
POR Serials 1986-, LEW Serials 1990-2004

Because of the lengthy publishing cycle for a book, information in a book is not always current. Periodical articles are current sources of information. There are two main types of periodicals: scholarly and popular. Scholarly periodicals are usually referred to as journals. Articles in journals contain reports of primary research; the articles are written by experts in the field and for other researchers/scholars; use terms and language specific to that discipline; may include graphs, charts, etc. related to the topic; most often are peer reviewed via an editorial board; are published by professional organization or society, university, research centers, scholarly presses; and often include a bibliography. Popular periodical articles contain general information; are written using easily understood language that appeals to a varied audience; are usually written by journalists or others who are not experts in the field; do not include citations; has a limited or non-existent editorial review board; and may contain glossy photographs. The Finding Articles tutorial provides more informaiton on how to find articles.

The following are some of the electronic indexing sources available to the University of Southern Maine community. For additional articles on ethics in a given profession, please consult databases related to that profession.

Academic Search Premier
For date and title coverage click here
Provides full text for nearly 4,000 scholarly publications of which 3,100 are peer reviewed. Academic areas of study include: social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies.

Business Source Premier
Provides full text for more than 2,800 scholarly business journals of which 912 are peer reviewed. Coverage includes: management, economics, finance, accounting, international business and much more.

CINAHL
Coverage from 1982
Provides access to virtually all English and some foreign language nursing and allied health journals, publications from the American Nurses' Association (ANA), the National League for Nursing (NLN), doctoral dissertations, selected nursing books, educational software, and audiovisuals. Contains some full text articles. A first source for locating articles on nursing and allied health topics periodical articles

ERIC
Coverage from 1966 (note: because of contractor changes, some of ERIC's updating may have coverage lags)
Indexes and abstracts journal articles and documents on education research and practice.

Medline
Coverage from 1966
Index to more than 3,600 journals covering all areas of clinical and experimental medicine, nursing, dentistry and health administration.

Philosopher's Index
Coverage from 1940 for U.S. materials, from 1967 for foreign materials
Provides indexing and abstracts from books and over 270 journals on philosophy and related interdisciplinary fields published in the U.S. and the Western World

PsycINFO
Coverage from 1887
Index to the professional and academic literature in psychology and related disciplines, including medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, and other areas. Coverage includes references and abstracts to over 1,300 journals in more than 20 languages, and to book chapters and books in the English language. The database includes information from empirical studies, case studies, surveys, bibliographies, literature reviews, discussion articles, conference reports and dissertations.

Sociological Abstracts
Coverage from 1974
Covers sociology and related disciplines including anthropology, criminology, demography, education, gerontology, mental health, minority studies, political science, public health, social psychology, social work, urban studies, welfare programs, and women's studies. Comprehensive and international in scope.

There is no authority control for the Internet. In choosing Internet resources it is imperative to evaluate the authenticity of the source. Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources (UCLA College Library) provides excellent evaluation criteria. The following selected resources have been chosen because of authenticity and comprehensiveness of coverage. They serve as only a sampling of the organizational codes of ethics available online.

American Anthropological Association (AAA) Code of Ethics

American Library Association (ALA) Code of Ethics

American Medical Association (AMA) Principles of Medical Ethics

American Psychological Association (APA) Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct

National Education Association (NEA) Code of Ethics

National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics

This category contains information on how to write the paper. In using resources it is imperative that they be used ethically and legally. The sources listed here provide assistance in this process.

USM has a site license for Endnote, a personal reference database program. The main functions of this program include maintenance of a database of references, downloading references from other databases, using the database to link to references in word-processed document, and generating a bibliography in the correct style for publications. See the Endnote Help for further information.

Writing Handbooks

St. Martin's Handbook
POR Reference PE1112 .L86 1989
Contains sections on the writing process, sentence construction, punctuation, doing research, and academic writing.

A Writer's Reference, 3rd Edition
POR Reference PE1408 .H2778 1995
Includes sections on composing and revising, design, sentence structure, grammar, punctuation, writing, and documentation.

Citation Styles

APA Documentation (University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center)

APA Style.org

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition
POR and GOR Reference BF76.7 .P83 2001; LEW Reserve BF76.7 .P83 2001

Online: A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources

Using American Psychlogical Association (APA) Format (Updated to 5th Edition) (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

Plagiarism

Plagiarism-The Do's and Dont's: Guidelines for Avoiding Plagiarism (University of California-Davis)

Plagiarism Examples (Indiana University School of Education)

USM Academic Integrity Policy

Last update: 9.14.05 mp

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