Political Science Research Guide

LexisNexis Academic

A comprehensive database providing access to over 6,000 news, business, and legal publications, LexisNexis Academic includes Shepard's Citations for all federal and state court cases back to 1789 and Company Dossier, a service that provides detailed company information, financial data, and tools for comparing companies using a variety of criteria.  Sources include newspapers, magazines, journals, polls, blogs, television and radio broadcast transcripts, SEC filings and reports, federal and state codes, and more.  Click How Do I? and View Tutorials for more information on searching the database.

Coverage: varies | Format: full-text; abstracts | Search Tips

TOPICsearch

A current events database, TOPICsearch allows researchers to explore popular topics, controversial issues and viewpoints pertaining to social, political, and economic issues scientific discoveries.  Sources include newspapers, periodicals, biographies, public opinion polls, book reviews, pamphlets, and government information.  TOPICsearch provides access to 1550 full text publications.  Indexing and abstracts are provided for more than 1650 journals.  Topics include:  aging, AIDS, crime, drugs, education, ethics, health, religion, sports, national debate and more. 

Coverage: varies  | Format: full-text; citations; abstracts | Search Tips

SocINDEX with Full Text

A comprehensive sociology research database, SocINDEX with Full Text provides access to nearly 600 full text journals, 735 books and monographs, and 6800 conference papers.  Encompasses all sub-disciplines including abortion, criminology, criminal justice, demography, ethnic and racial studies, gender studies, marriage and family, political sociology, religion, rural and urban sociology, social development, social psychology, social structure, social work, substance abuse and other addictions, violence, and sociological history, research, and theory. 

Coverage: 1895 - present  | Format: full-text; citations; abstracts | Search Tips

SIRS Researcher

Access:   Password Required.  Ask a librarian at 870-460-1080.

SIRS Researcher indexes articles selected from domestic and international newspapers, magazines, journals, and government publications with a focus on social, scientific, economic, and political issues worldwide. 

Coverage: 1988 - present  | Format: citations; abstracts (1994 - present) | Search Tips

Legal Collection

The Legal Collection database contains the full text of 250 scholarly law journals.  Subject coverage includes:  international and federal law, organized crime, ethics, criminal justice, medical, labor, and human resource law.

Coverage: 1965 - present  | Format: full-text; abstracts; citations | Search Tips

Need additional resources? Try the General Research Guide. This guide lists multidisciplinary resources, which cover a variety of subject content areas.

Print Journals:

All print journals, to which the library subscribes, are listed in the online library catalog. To look for a specific journal, search by TITLE. If you are unsure of the exact title, search by KEYWORD to find the title you want.

Electronic Journals:

All electronic journals in the library's collection are listed in the Magazine, Newspaper, and Journal Finder. You can search for a specific title by keyword or browse an A-to-Z list by title or subject. 

Books:

Use the online library catalog to find books. Books may be searched by keyword, title, author, or subject.

To find a specific book, search by TITLE. If your search is unsuccessful or if you are unsure of the exact title, try a KEYWORD search. To find books written by a specific person, search by AUTHOR. To find a book about a specific person or topic, search by SUBJECT. Subject searching requires the use of Library of Congress Subject Headings. If your subject search is unsuccessful, try a KEYWORD search or consult a librarian at daviska@uamont.edu.

Library of Congress Call Number Ranges for Political Science:

J------General legislative and executive papers
JA-----Political science (General)
JC-----Political theory
JF-----Political institutions and public administration -- General
JJ-----Political institutions and public administration -- North America
JK-----Political institutions and public administration -- United States
JL-----Political institutions and public administration -- Canada. Latin America
JN-----Political institutions and public administration -- Europe
JQ-----Political institutions and public administration -- Asia. Africa. Australia. Pacific area.
JS-----Local government. Municipal government
JV-----Colonies and colonization. Emigration and immigration. International migration
JZ-----International relations

The library's collection of books is organized by subject. Once you locate a call number on the shelves, you can browse other books in the area, as they will contain the same subject.

Borrow Items From Other Libraries:

If the library does not own a publication that you need, we can borrow books and obtain copies of journal article from other libraries.  Submit an interlibrary loan request form online.  Materials may be supplied for free or a fee.  You will generally receive the item within two weeks.  

Selected Reference Resources:

Congress: A to Z
REF JK 1021 C554 2003

Elections: A to Z
REF JK 1976 M57 2003

Major Acts of Congress
REF KF 154 M35 2004

Political parties of the World
REF JF 2051 D39 2005

Women in Congress: 1917 - 2006
REF JK 1030 W66 2006

Selected Internet Resources:

Government Information by Topic
http://www.usa.gov

Official portal to government resources online. - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

American Political Science Association
http://www.apsanet.org/index.cfm

The American Political Science Association, founded in 1903, is the leading professional organization for the study of political science and serves more than 15,000 members in over 80 countries. - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

American Politics
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/psusp.html

This site provides links to online resources on political science. It is maintained by the University of Michigan Government Documents Center - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

Country Studies
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html

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. - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/pubpapers/search.html

The Public Papers of the Presidents is published by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) and is the official publication of United States Presidents' public writings, addresses, and remarks. Each Public Papers volume contains the papers and speeches of the President of the United States that were issued by the Office of the Press Secretary during the specified time period. - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

White House Website
http://www.whitehouse.gov/

The office website of the White House, with updates on the current presidency - Accessed Jan. 17, 2008.

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