The Trexler Library: Muhlenberg College

Introduction to Comparative Government and International Relations

Need help with your research? Contact:

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

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

Selected Reference Materials

CIA World Factbook
Online Location: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/

Credo Reference
Online Location: http://0-www.credoreference.com.library.muhlenberg.edu/ or search the library catalog by title.
Credo Reference is a collection of hundreds of reference works, including general and subject specific dictionaries, encyclopedias, guides, companions and more--all online, all searchable from one search box.

The Europa World Year Book
Online Location: http://0-www.europaworld.com.library.muhlenberg.edu/ or search the library catalog by title

Political Handbook of the World
Online Location: http://0-library.cqpress.com.library.muhlenberg.edu/phw/ or search the library catalog by title

US Department of State: Background Notes
Online Location: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn

Finding Articles: Databases & Indexes

SEARCHING FOR ARTICLES

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

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

Use UlrichsWeb Periodicals Directory (linked from the Library Homepage -- Online Reference Shelf (in the Quick Links box)) to find out information about individual journals, including whether or not they are peer-reviewed.

Subject-Specific Databases: International Relations and Political Science

Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO)
Full text of working papers, policy briefs, conference proceedings, journal articles and more in the area of international affairs theory and research.

PAIS International (1972 to present)
Citations from 1972 to the present from scholarly journals, gray literature, government publications, and more from 120 countries on political, economic, social and public policy issues.

Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
Indexes international serials literature in political science and complementary fields, including international relations, law, and public administration / policy.

Interdisciplinary and News Databases

Academic Search Premier
Full text access to scholarly and non-scholarly publications in a wide variety of disciplines and subject areas.

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

LexisNexis Academic
Full text of thousands of newspapers, magazines, broadcast transcripts, business publications, legal materials, and more.

Omnifile (Wilson Web)
A database with some full text articles covering various academic subjects including general sciences, humanities, social sciences, and business.

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.

Finding Books

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

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

Government Information

UNITED STATES

Muhlenberg College receives about 30% of all materials published by the Federal Government. These items cover a wide range of subject areas--from legal materials and the records of Congress to health and education information and in-depth research conducted by the Smithsonian. All of the government documents that we receive have records in the Trexler Library Catalog.

Government Documents Center (University of Michigan Library)
http://www.lib.umich.edu/government-documents-center/guides-1
"The Documents Center is a central reference and referral point for government information, whether local, state, federal, foreign or international. Its web pages are a reference and instructional tool for government, political science, statistical data, and news."

ProQuest Congressional
Provides access to detailed information about Congress. It includes The Congressional Record, congressional hearings, legislation, legislative histories, etc., from 1969 to the present.

OTHER

Government Information -- International Documents Web Search
http://www.libraries.iub.edu/index.php?pageId=4173
"This is an experimental web search that you can use to find information from intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) such as the United Nations, World Bank, IMF, and related organizations. "

Governments on the World Wide Web
http://www.gksoft.com/govt/en/

Legal Information Institute (Cornell University Law School)
http://www.law.cornell.edu/world/
"The LII collection of world legal materials gathers, country by country, continent by continent, the Internet-accessible sources of the constitutions, statutes, judicial opinions, and related legal material from around the globe (excluding the U.S. material held in the LII's other collections). It also holds resources and document collections of International law. "

World Legal Information Institute: Countries
http://www.worldlii.org/catalog/215.html

Citing Your Sources

For help using Chicago style, consult the following resources:

The Chicago manual of style, 15th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003.
Reference Desk Reserve 808.027 C632m (at Reference Desk)

Trexler Library handout on using Chicago style
http://www.muhlenberg.edu/library/reshelp/chicago_example.pdf
This and other style guide handouts available via Library Homepage -- Citation Guides (in the Research box).

Writer's Handbook (Writing Center, University of Wisconsin--Madison)
http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocChicago.html