University of Southern Maine

Sociology 210 - Critical Thinking about Social Issues (Prof. Cheryl Laz)

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

For further research assistance, please contact Zip Kellogg (zkellogg@usm.maine.edu; 780-4272) or Pat Prieto (pprieto@usm.maine.edu; 780-5662).
Chat and e-mail research assistance and an appointment request form are also available through our Ask a Librarian service.

Books, journal titles, videos, government documents and other materials held in the University of Maine System are listed in URSUS, the online catalog. Because journal article citations are not individually included in URSUS, you will need to use an index to find this information (see the list of indexes and databases below or the more extensive Resources by Subject list).

Some of the databases allow you to limit your search to scholarly or peer reviewed journals; others offer the option of choosing a type of article. Keywords such as "study", "survey", or "research", used in addition to your subject terms, can be helpful in limiting your search results to reports on original research.

If the material you need is not available at the USM Libraries or online, the Libraries can usually obtain it for you. Books should be ordered through URSUS or MaineCat if possible; for journal articles and for books unavailable through URSUS or MaineCat, use Interlibrary Loan.

For more about finding the articles you want, see Finding Articles at USM.

The following resources are useful for locating explanations of research methodologies as well as definitions and overviews of sociological concepts and topics.

The Blackwell dictionary of sociology : a user's guide to sociological language
Por Reference HM425 .J64 2000

Dictionary of qualitative inquiry
Por Reference H61 .S4435 2001   

Encyclopedia of food and culture
GOR Reference, Lew Reference GT2850 .E53 2003 

Encyclopedia of social theory
Por Reference HM425 .E47 2005

Encyclopedia of sociology
Por Reference HM17 .E5; Gor REF HM17 .E5

Sociological Abstracts
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.

Academic Search Premier
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.

Agricola
Index to materials acquired by the National Agricultural Library and co-operating institutions. Includes journal articles, monographs, series, and materials in many non-print formats covering a broad range of agricultural topics.

CINAHL
As the primary database for nursing and allied health literature, including journals, American Nurses' Association and National League for Nursing publications, CINAHL offers substantial coverage of nutrition-related topics.

Communication And Mass Media Complete
Offers full-text coverage for more than 160 titles, and indexes additional journals, major journalism reviews, recent encyclopedias, and handbooks.

PAIS International
Index to the literature of public and social policy, and other aspects of social sciences. Includes journal articles, serials, books, government documents, directories, and public, intergovernmental, and private organization reports.

These indexes and databases help you identify journal articles and other publications. Once you have found your citations, check the journal title in URSUS to see whether the USM Libraries have the item you need, or see Finding Articles at USM for detailed instructions.

Oxford Dictionary of Sociology
(activated library barcode required for access)