SOC 2820: Methods of Data Collection
You can use the Library's Catalog Advanced Search to find articles on your topic in the WMU collection.
If you want peer-reviewed articles or articles limited by a specific date range, or limited to a specific subject (topic, discipline), filter boxes are located on the left column. Then select the green filter button to filter your search. Library Search is interdisciplinary and will search all disciplines. In many cases, using an interdisciplinary search you will discover articles from subject areas you find valuable but had not considered prior to the search. That’s a good thing!
Select this link for more information and tutorials about using Library Search
Try the following databases for articles in sociology and related areas:
- Sociology (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
Covers the international literature of sociology and social work, including culture and social structure, history and theory of sociology, social psychology, substance abuse and addiction and more. This collection provides full-text coverage of many core titles included in Sociological Abstracts and Social Services Abstracts.
- Criminal Justice Database This link opens in a new window
Searchable and browsable database of U.S.and international criminal justice journals. The database includes abstract and indexing for over 400 titles, with more than 170 available in full-text from 1981-present.
- CQ Press Library This link opens in a new window
Created and hosted by CQ Press, the CQ Press Library is the definitive reference resource for research in American government, politics, history, public policy, and current affairs. A wealth of CQ Press resources and years of journalistic and editorial expertise are combined in this indispensable reference collection. These reference products offer researchers—whether students, scholars, professionals, or interested citizens—a range of tools for discovering and understanding CQ Press's authoritative content. The suite includes CQ Almanac, CQ Researcher Plus Archive, Supreme Court Yearbook, and Politics in America.
- PsycINFO This link opens in a new window
Covers world-wide literature in psychology and related disciplines. Journal articles, technical reports, books, book chapters, and dissertations are included. Coverage from 1806 to Current. Updated weekly.
- Communication Source This link opens in a new window
Content from publications worldwide pertaining to Communication, Linguistics, Rhetoric and Discourse, Speech-Language Pathology, Media Studies, and other relevant fields. This database features a subject-specific thesaurus with 4,528 preferred and 8,528 non-preferred terms, as well as searchable cited references to help researchers retrieve the records most relevant to their search queries.
- Access World News (NewsBank) This link opens in a new window
This is a comprehensive resource that includes more than 8,000 news publications from nearly 200 countries worldwide, including major national and international newspapers, as well as local and regional titles.
Newspaper Databases
- Newsbank This link opens in a new window
Provides the Access World News Research Collection with full-text articles from over 4500 U.S. and international newspapers, wire services, and broadcasts. There is access to America's Historical Newspapers, as well as Hot Topics and Special Reports on current issues in the news.
- Access World News (NewsBank) This link opens in a new window
This is a comprehensive resource that includes more than 8,000 news publications from nearly 200 countries worldwide, including major national and international newspapers, as well as local and regional titles.
Review of how to Narrow or Expand Your Search for Articles on a Topic
(sxc.hu alicja_sto 1199922 alicja_sto)
Ways to narrow your results:
- limit to certain years only at beginning of search (e.g. last 10 years)
- add another concept to your search using "AND" (e.g. elderly AND housing AND well-being)
- limit your results to scholarly or peer-reviewed journal articles only
- mark or tag the most relevant articles in your search results and create a smaller list of titles
Ways to expand your results:
- add synonyms using "OR" (e.g. elderly OR older adults)
- broaden your search (e.g. college students AND stress management
instead of college students AND stress management AND outcomes)