Subject Specialist:
Bonnie Ryan,
Bird Library, Room 210,
O:315-443-4674,
bcryan@syr.edu

LIBRARY CONTACTS

SU Library website: http://library.syr.edu

Email (http://library.syr.edu/information/forms/ref_question.htm#ask)

LibChat Online Reference

Telephone, Bird Library Reference: 315-443-4083

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What is an Annotated Bibliography?
Reference Department;
Instruction, Research, and Information Services (IRIS);
Cornell University Library
Ithaca, NY, USA

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How to Critically Evaluate Sources

Authority * Is the article signed? * Who is the author? * What are the author's credentials? * With which institution(s) are they affiliated? * Is the publication scholarly or popular? Are there footnotes?A bibliography?	Objectivity * Who is the audience? * What is the purpose of the article? * Does the author state the goals for this article or web page? * Does the site inform, educate, persuade or act as a soapbox? * If the author is affiliated with an institution, does this affiliation bias the information presented?
Accuracy * Is the web site well organized? * Has the author used good grammar? Are there spelling errors? * Are the graphics appropriate for the content? * Is the information complete and accurate?	Currency *When was the web site created, or the article written? If it has been updated, is there a revision date? * Do the links on the web site work? * Is the page maintained regularly?

See also Critically Analyzing Information Sources,
Reference Department;
Instruction, Research, and Information Services (IRIS);
Cornell University Library
Ithaca, NY, USA

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Choosing Key Terms

When you have chosen your research statement or question, take some time to break the statement down into key terms or phrases. You will use these terms in the various databases to find sources on your topic.

Example: Use of dialect to establish community/identity or as a social barrier.
Key Terms: Dialect, community, identity, social barriers

Some hints for choosing key terms:

Be flexible: After dividing you statement into key terms, think of alternative terms, such as synonyms, or broader, narrower, or related terms. Each database may use different keyword or subject terms to describe a topic.

Example: Dialect (broader- African Americans languages; narrower - Ebonics or Black English)

Think globally and chronologically: Consider terms that contain a geographic area, or a broad or specific time period.

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Definitions of Primary and Secondary Sources

How do you tell the difference bewteen primary and secondary materials?
Here are some web sites from some universities and research institutions that might help you to make that distinction:

Primary, Secondary, Tertiary Sources - Univ. of North Carolina, Randall Library

How to Distinguish between Primary and Secondary Sources . University of California, Santa Cruz

The Learning Page. The Library of Congress

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PRIMARY SOURCES

Catalog – This is what you use to find out if the Library owns a particular book, journal, video or other type of media.  You can search by keyword, author (last name first), title, or subject heading.  Remember to use your subject headings to find more relevant resources on a topic.

 

SECONDARY SOURCES

Databases – These are electronic indexes that you can search to locate journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations and conference or proceeding papers.  Some databases provide full text access; others only provide you with the citation.  The Library owns over 300 databases.  Some are very subject specific (e.g. Sociological Abstracts, America: History and Life); others are interdisciplinary (e.g. Expanded Academic, Wilson Select).  To access any of the databases from off campus, you will be prompted for a user name and password.  Your user nameis your ten digit ID # (make sure that you use all ten digits) and your password is your last name in lower-case letters.  For additional assistance with this, please go to the instructions for remote access.

Recommended Databases

Alt-Press Watch - Full-text database of selected newspapers, magazines, and journals of the alternative and independent press.

Social Sciences Abstracts - Index with abstracts to more than 400 international, English-language periodicals. Indexing from February 1983 to the present. Abstracts from January 1994. Updated monthly.

GenderWatch - Full text publications that focus on the impact of gender across a broad spectrum of subject areas.

CQ (Congressional Quarterly) Researcher - An encyclopedia addressing public policy issues. Over 44 reports are released each year, covering legislative action in areas ranging from social and teen issues to environment, health and nutrition, education, international affairs, economics and science and technology. Each report focuses on a single topic and features concise background discussion and chronologies, overviews of the current situation, pro and con commentary, as well as online links to relevant organizations, and a lengthy bibliography of related books and articles. Covers 1991-present.

JSTOR - Full text archive of scholarly publications in mathematics, science, and the social sciences.

Expanded Academic - Full text articles and images from scholarly journals, magazines, and newspapers. Spans all academic disciplines from arts and humanities to social sciences, science, and technology.

Locating Journal Articles
1.    Go to the Database Main Menu to locate a relevant database.  You can choose a database by using the general subject categories of Social Sciences, Humanities, Science & Technology, Newspapers, etc. or you can choose an interdisciplinary database.  Remember, some of the databases offer full text of the articles online, but others you will need to locate the journal article either through one of the e-journal packages or in print. 

2.     If the database is not full text, write down the full citation of the article that you want.  Full citations include:  author’s name, journal name, title of article, dates, volume & issue # (if available) and page numbers.

        Example:  Morris-Roberts, Kathryn. 2001. “Intervening in Friendship Exclusion? The Politics of Doing  Feminist  Research with Teenage Girls.” Ethics, Place and Environment 4.2 :147-153.

3.    With this information go to the Full Text Journal Locator (you can access this through the E-Journals link on the  Library webpage) to see if we have the article available full text through another database.  If we do, use an advanced search in the database to locate the article.

4.     If the article is not available full text online, go to the Summit online catalog, to find a call # for the journal that you are looking for.  Using the call # and the article citation, go to the relevant floor and locate it. However, current issues (from the last year) are kept on the 2nd floor in the Current Periodicals area.

5.  If the Library does not own the journal that you need, you can request it through interlibrary loan (ILLiad). This is a free service that you can use as often as you like.  Generally, you can borrow a book for 4-6 weeks and a journal article is photocopied and yours to keep.  Please note:  It can take 7-14 days to receive materials through Interlibrary Loan.

TERTIARY SOURCES

Core Print Resources
International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences 26 vols. Ref H41 .I58 2001
Encyclopedia of American Social Movements 3 vols. Ref HN .E594 2004

Core Online Resources
Britannica Online - Searchable and browsable collection of authoritative references, including Britannica's latest article database; articles not yet in the print Britannica; Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary (tenth edition); and the Britannica book of the year.

CQ Researcher - An encyclopedia addressing public policy issues.

XreferPlus - Full-text reference books in the arts, humanities, social sciences and sciences.

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For Your Information

To make Copies - 1st Floor, where you can purchase a VendaCard.  You will need one of these to print out or photocopy materials in the library.  There are copiers usable with a vendacard, on floors 2-4 of Bird Library. There are two copiers in the extended use area outside of the Library on the first floor that are coin-operated, but the copies are .15 with coins, rather than .08 with the card. You cannot take periodicals outside to the extended use area to copy.

Reserves –1st floor at Circulation desk; be sure to have your call number first before going to get the material at the Reserves desk.

Media Services – Lower level – access to Microsoft Word and other graphics-type of software (Adobe products, etc.).  Also, video collection and microforms.

Current Periodicals - 2nd floor - Journals, magazines and newspapers from the last 6-12 months are shelved here in alphabetical order.

Style Guides
Citation Style Guides - This page links to various style manuals available online: A.P.A. (American Psychological Association), M.L.A. (Modern Language Association), Turabian, and general guides.