Governments and Politics of East Asia

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
Note: 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 1pm-9pm.
See http://www.muhlenberg.edu/library/forms/ask.html for more information.

Selected Reference Materials

Bowman, John S., ed. Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000.
Reference 950 B787c

Embree, Ainslie T., ed. Encyclopedia of Asian History. New York: Scribner, 1998.
Reference 950 E56o v.1-4

The Europa World Year Book. London, England: Europa Publications Limited, 2008.
Ready Reference 341.1 E89
Note: Older editions (1966- ) in Main Collection at same call number.

Leifer, Michael. Dictionary of the Modern Politics of South-East Asia, 3rd ed. New York: Routledge, 2001.
Reference 959.053 L527d

Levinson, David and Karen Christensen, eds. Encyclopedia of Modern Asia. New York: Scribner, 2002.
Reference 950.03 E56o v.1-6

Political Handbook of the World. New York: Published for the Center for Comparative Political Research of the State University of New York at Binghamton and for the Council on Foreign Relations by McGraw-Hill Book Co., 2008.
Ready
Reference 329 P769
Note: Older editions (1928- ) in Main Collection at same call number.

Statistical yearbook for Asia and the Pacific / United Nations. Bangkok, Thailand: Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 2004.
Statistics Reference 315 S797y

Specific Countries

China

Dillon, Michael, ed. China: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary. Richmond, Surrey: Curzon, 1998.
Reference 951.003 D579c

Ke-wen, Wang, ed. Modern China: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Nationalism. New York: Garland Publishing, 1998.
Reference 951.003 W246m

Mackerras, Colin, with Donald H. McMillen and Andrew Watson, eds. Dictionary of the Politics of the People's Republic of China. New York: Routledge, 1998.
Reference 951.0503 D554p

Japan

Heenan, Patrick, ed. The Japan Handbook. Chicago, IL: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998.
Reference 952.049 H458j

Bowring, Richard and Peter Kornicki, eds. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Japan. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
Reference 952 C178e

Stockwin, James Arthur Ainscow. Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan. New York: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003.
Reference 952.0403 S866d

North Korea

Bong-uk, Chong, ed. A Handbook on North Korea, 1st Rev. Seoul, Korea: Naewoe Press, 1998.
Reference 951.93 C548h

Online

The following online resources might be useful providing overviews, history, and data on individual countries.

CIA World Factbook
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
A standard source for current data on countries of the world.

Library of Congress Country Portals to the World
http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html
A gateway to recommended sources on specific countries.
From the site: "Portals to the World contains selective links providing authoritative, in-depth information about the nations and other areas of the world. They are arranged by country or area with the links for each sorted into a wide range of broad categories. The links were selected by Area Specialists and other Library staff using Library of Congress selection criteria."

Library of Congress Country Studies: Area Handbook Series
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/
From the site: "The Country Studies Series presents a description and analysis of the historical setting and the social, economic, political, and national security systems and institutions of countries throughout the world." Note that some of the entries have not been updated in recent years. Check for currency.

US Department of State: Background Notes
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn
Great for current information on specific countries, particularly relevant to U.S. foreign relations.
From the site: "These publications include facts about the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy, and foreign relations of independent states, some dependencies, and areas of special sovereignty. The Background Notes are updated/revised by the Office of Electronic Information and Publications of the Bureau of Public Affairs as they are received from the Department's regional bureaus and are added to the database of the Department of State website you are now using."


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  --  Books, Videos, Music, ... (in Find box)  -- 
                                Trexler Library Catalog

  • For tips on searching the catalog, use the Help link above the search boxes.

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  --  Books, Videos, Music, ... (in Find box)  -- 
                               Other Library Catalogs -- WorldCat

  • E-ZBorrow. For quick delivery of books from many Pennsylvania and area academic libraries (including University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University, University of Pittsburgh, and many more), use E-ZBorrow. (E-ZBorrow takes 2-4 business days.)

GETTING THERE:      Library Homepage  --  Books, Videos, Music, ... (in Find box)  -- 
                               Other Library Catalogs -- E-ZBorrow

TIP: Because E-ZBorrow books can arrive so quickly, check the E-ZBorrow catalog for any books you find in WorldCat. If not available there, then request via the ILL button in Worldcat.

  • LVAIC. You can borrow books directly from LVAIC (Lehigh Valley Association of Independent Colleges) Libraries.

GETTING THERE:      Library Homepage  --  Books, Videos, Music, ... (in Find box)  -- 
                               Regional Libraries  -- LVAIC Libraries

For more information on Interlibrary Loan options, see http://www.muhlenberg.edu/library/more/ill/index.html or ask for help.

GETTING THERE:      Library Homepage  --  ILL (in the Services & Forms box)

 

Government Documents

United States

Muhlenberg College receives about 25% 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.

GPO Monthly Catalog
The most complete single source listing of Government Printing Office publications. It covers the period 1976 to present and includes a wide range of publications types including agency reports and congressional documents, providing the Superintendent of Document Number (SUDOC).

Google U.S. Government Search
Google's search tool for state and federal webpages.

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

Documents Center (University of Michigan Library)
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/
"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."

Other

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

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


Finding Articles: Databases & Indexes

SEARCHING FOR ARTICLES

Topical Databases: International Relations and Political Science

PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service)
Top source for International Relations, Comparative Politics, and Public Affairs resources. Indexes select articles, books, conference proceedings, government documents, statistical directories, 1972 to present.

CIAO (Columbia International Affairs Online)
Scholarly source for theory and research in international affairs since 1991. Includes working papers, conference proceedings, books, journals, policy briefs, maps and country data.

Topical Databases: Other Disciplines

See a list of all databases at via the Library Homepage  --  Articles A-Z (in the Find box).

Economic Literature (Econ Lit)
Index to select articles, books, conference proceedings, government documents, statistical directories, 1972 to present. Especially useful for research on a country's economic policies, development issues, and trade.

Sociological Abstracts (SocAbs)
The main indexing source for journal articles in Sociology. SocAbs covers sociological issues present in East Asian societies.

Health Source
Covers health topics and contains some full-text journal articles. Useful for searching for public health topics in East Asia.

Interdisciplinary and News Databases

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

OmniFile (WilsonWeb)
Multi-disciplinary database providing the complete content–indexing, abstracts, and full text–from six of Wilson's full-text databases. Includes resources from Political Science subject areas.

Lexis Nexis Academic Universe
Indexes and provides full-text of major national and international newspapers, newswires, select journals and magazines, and legal publications. Updated daily. Coverage from as early as 1980 to the present. Special section for country information.


GETTING THE ARTICLES

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

  2. 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. Verify that we have online, print, or microform access to the year/volume you need.
  3. 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  --  ILL (in the Services & Forms box)  --  Articles request form). Fill out the form with as much information as possible.

Selected Websites

General Sources

Asia-Pacific Research Network
http://www.aprnet.org/

ASNIC: Asian Studies Network Information Center (Univeristy of Texas at Austin)
http://asnic.utexas.edu/asnic.html

Asian Studies WWW Virtual Library (Australian National University)
http://coombs.anu.edu.au/WWWVL-AsianStudies.html

Southeast Asia Research Centre
http://www.cityu.edu.hk/searc/

IGOs

Search Engine -- Government Information: International Documents (Indiana University, Bloomington)
http://www.libraries.iub.edu/index.php?pageId=4173

*****

ASEAN: Association of Southeast Asian Nations
http://www.aseansec.org/

International Monetary Fund
http://www.imf.org/

UNESCAP: United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
http://www.unescap.org/

United Nations Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific
http://www.unsiap.or.jp/

UNICEF: United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund
http://www.unicef.org/

World Bank
http://www.worldbank.org/

Academic Institutions and Thinktanks

Directory -- Political Science Resources on the Web / Think Tanks (University of Michigan Library)
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/psthink.html

*****

Asia Foundation (a U.S. NGO)
http://www.asiafoundation.org/

Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific
http://www.cscap.org/

East Asia Barometer (National Taiwan University)
http://eacsurvey.law.ntu.edu.tw/

East Asian Studies Center (Indiana University)
http://www.indiana.edu/~easc/

East & Southeast Asia: An Annotated Directory of Internet Resources (University of Redlands)
http://newton.uor.edu/Departments&Programs/AsianStudiesDept/general-pol.html

European Alliance For Asian Studies
http://www.asia-alliance.org/

Institute of Political Science, Academia Sinica (Taiwan)
http://www.ipsas.sinica.edu.tw/indexe.php

Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
http://www.iseas.edu.sg/iseas.html

Nordic Institute of Asian Studies
http://nias.ku.dk/

School of East Asian Studies (University of Sheffield, UK)
http://www.seas.ac.uk/


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 from the library website.  Library Homepage --  Citation Guides (in the Research Help box).

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


© Muhlenberg College
Last modified: 1 September 2008