Race and Representation

Race & Representation

Need help with your research? Contact:

Jen Jarson
Social Sciences Reference Librarian
phone: x3552
email: jarson [at] muhlenberg [dot] edu
IM (AIM, Yahoo, MSN): jjarson1 (add @hotmail.com for MSN)

Need help after hours?
IM the Library at TalkToTrexler (for AIM, Yahoo, and MSN)
Note: Add @hotmail.com for MSN.
Online Sunday-Thursday 2pm-10pm.
See Ask a Librarian for more information.

What is a Literature Review?

Literature Reviews (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/literature_review.html

How to Write a Literature Review (University of California, Santa Cruz)
http://library.ucsc.edu/ref/howto/literaturereview.html

Finding Background Information: Selected Reference Sources

Use reference sources to:

get background information on your topic

determine ways to narrow your topic area

find key terms and subjects to use when searching for articles and books

find lists of references for suggested further reading

and more...

COMMUNICATION / MEDIA STUDIES REFERENCE

Encyclopedia of Communication and Information (2002)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 302.203 E56o v.1-3 (LEVEL A)

Encyclopedia of International Media and Communications (2003)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 302.2303 E56o v.1-4 (LEVEL A)

Encyclopedia of Media and Politics (2007)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 302.230973 E56o (LEVEL A)

Encyclopedia of Television (2004)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 384.5503 E56o v.1-4 (LEVEL A)

International Encyclopedia of Communication (2008)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 302.203 I56e v.1-12 (LEVEL A)

RACE REFERENCE

Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies (2002)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 3305.8 G618c (LEVEL A)

Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America (1995)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 305.800973 V413g v.1-2 (LEVEL A)

Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups (1980)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 973.04 H339 (LEVEL A)

Race Relations in America: A Reference Guide with Primary Documents (2006)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 305.800973 D264r (LEVEL A)

Racial and Ethnic Relations in America (2000)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 305.800973 R121a v.1-3 (LEVEL A)

EXAMPLES OF REFERENCE WORKS ON SPECIFIC GROUPS

Asian-American Almanac: A Reference Work on Asians in the United States (1995)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 973.0495 G162a (LEVEL A)

Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (2006)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 973.0496073 E56o v.1-6 (LEVEL A)

Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States (2005)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 973.0468 O98e v.1-4 (LEVEL A)

Jewish-American History and Culture: An Encyclopedia (1992)
Call Number: Trexler Library Reference Collection 973.04924 F529 (LEVEL A)

Search the library catalog for more reference sources or browse the reference collection on level A of the library.

Finding Books: Library Catalogs

TREXLER LIBRARY

Search the Trexler Library Catalog to find out what books, government publications, journals, videos, etc. the library owns.

GETTING THERE: Use the shortcut search box on the Library Homepage or Library Homepage -- Library Catalogs (in the Quick Links box) -- Trexler Library Catalog

OTHER LIBRARIES

WorldCat. To find books held by other libraries, search WorldCat, a database of over 60 million library records from around the country and world. Use the ILL button to request a book from another library. (ILL can take 10-14 days.)

GETTING THERE: Library Homepage -- Library Catalogs (in Quick Links box) -- Other Library Catalogs -- WorldCat

Finding Articles: Databases & Indexes

See a list of all article databases via the Library Homepage -- Databases A-Z (in the Quick Links box).

Check the Subject Guides (linked from the Library Homepage) for other recommended databases for this and other subject areas.

Not sure which database will have the best results for your topic? Try Search Central to search across many of the library's databases at once to identify those with the most results for your search. From the Library Homepage, use the Search Central search box in the tab on the Search Central link in the Quick Links box.

SUBJECT SPECIFIC DATABASES: COMMUNICATION / MEDIA STUDIES

Communication and Mass Media Complete
The most comprehensive database in communication studies.

Sage Journals Online
Provides access to over 500 journals published by Sage (full-text online for 1999-present).

SUBJECT SPECIFIC DATABASES: OTHER AREAS
(See Databases A-Z for all library article databases or Subject Guides for recommendations by subject area.)

Health Source
Indexes scholarly articles dealing with public health and medicine.

MLA International Bibliography
A humanities database that covers a wide range of topics including race in media.

Sociological Abstracts
Premier sociology database.

PAIS International
Indexes government and scholarly journals dealing with all manner of public affairs and political science.

INTERDISCIPLINARY DATABASES

Academic Search Premier
Large and diverse database that covers most academic disciplines, including communication and sociology. Contains both scholarly and non-academic resources. Includes many articles in full text.

JSTOR
Full text of scholarly journals from most academic disciplines. Coverage is from the inception of the journal through three to five years ago.

OmniFile (WilsonWeb)
Multi-disciplinary database providing the complete content-indexing, abstracts, and full text-from six of Wilson's full-text databases, including Social Sciences Abstracts.

NEWSPAPER DATABASES

Alternative Press Index
Indexes hundreds of alternative, radical and left periodicals, newspapers and magazines.

LexisNexis Academic
Deep archives of all major newspapers worldwide, plus many local U.S. papers.

GETTING THE ARTICLES

When searching for articles in library databases, you may find the full-text of an article linked in the database.

If not, you need to search the Trexler Library Catalog to see if we own the journal in which the article is published.

Most databases have a Get It! link embedded. Click the link to check our holdings.

Otherwise, search the catalog by journal title or by ISSN . Verify that we have online, print, or microform access to the year/volume you need.

If we do not own the journal you need, request the article via Interlibrary Loan.

Some databases have a Request on Interlibrary Loan link embedded. Click the link to fill out the form. Click Submit.

Otherwise, use the Interlibrary Loan Journal Article Request Form (Library Homepage -- Interlibrary Loan (in the Quick Links box) -- Articles request form). Fill out the form with as much information as possible. Ask for help, if you have questions.

Citing Your Sources: APA Style

For help using APA Style, consult the following resources:

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed. Washington, DC: APA, 2010.
Reference Desk Reserve 808.06615 P976m 2010 (at Reference Desk)

Concise Rules of APA Style, 6th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2010.
Reference Desk Reserve 808.06615 C744r 2010 (at Reference Desk)

Trexler Library handout on using APA style: http://www.muhlenberg.edu/library/reshelp/apa_example.pdf