Assignment   Books    Scholarly Articles in Anthropology    

 

Assignment

Components of research paper for this class are due in stages throughout the term. You have already submitted ideas for your research topic/question. You will narrow down your topic today (12/15). An annotated bibliography is due 1/12, a rough draft on 1/23, and the final paper on 1/28.

In your final paper, you must use at least 5 good-quality, college-level sources; at least 4 of these must be peer-reviewed.

Books

Use the Tredway Library catalog, ALiCat, to search for books. If you're not finding what you need, repeat your search in I-Share, a catalog of books from the libraries of nearly 70 college & university libraries throughout Illinois. You can request books from any of these other libraries and usually get them within 3 days. If you leave yourself a few days to receive books from other libraries, you're more likely to find the sources that are most appropriate for your topic.

Hints for using ALiCat & I-Share:

1. Try a Boolean search. Boolean searching lets you combine search terms using "and." Examples: Inuit and hunting; indigenous and religion

2. Notice the subject headings. When you find a book that is very relevant for your research, click into the record and take a look at the subject headings for that item. Each is a hyperlink that will lead you to other books on that topic.

3. Browse! You may start to notice that several books you've found in ALiCat are located close to each other on the shelves; books are organized by subject, so head up to that section of the stacks and take a look at other books that are nearby on the shelves.

Articles in Anthropology

“Peer-reviewed,” “scholarly,” “refereed,” “academic”…these words can be used interchangeably.  They mean that a resource has been thoroughly reviewed by scholars and that the information it contains is of high quality.  “Academic” sources can include books, journals, critical reviews, analyses, and original research articles.

To quickly get to shortened list of databases that are appropriate for research in anthropology, start at the library homepage and select "Social Sciences" under "Search by Subject." Read the descriptions of the resources listed to determine which might contain scholarly articles about your particular area of interest within anthropology.

Three specific suggestions:

▪ AnthroSource (this database is particularly good for finding information on cultures outside the U.S.)
- In "Advanced Search," use the first box ("all of the words") to combine terms; you'll get the same results as you would by using "AND."
- All articles in AnthroSource are full text!
      

▪ JSTOR
- In "Advanced Search," check the box by "Article" and limit to appropriate disciplines (Anthroplogy, African Studies, etc.; think about what disciplines best relate to your topic).
      

▪ Academic Search Premier
- After you get your results for your first search (try combining the same keywords you used in ALiCat), notice the links under "Source Types" on the left; click "Academic Journals," "Magazines," or "Newspapers" to find each type of source (try all three!)
- If your results are too broad, use the links under "Subject" to focus your search a bit more.

The databases listed above (and others on the "Social Sciences" page) will be good resources for anthropology-specific articles, but your research may also be informed by scholarship in other areas, including sociology, religion, political science, etc. You can find additional databases in these areas by choosing the appropriate link under "Search by Subject" on the library homepage.

**How can you be sure that an article you've found is scholarly?**

If you choose "peer-reviewed" or a similar option when searching in an online database, you can be confident that the results you find are going to be scholarly. But what if you're in a database where it's unclear how to narrow to scholarly results, or the database doesn't let you do that at all?

▪ Check Ulrich's (in Augustana's Databases A-Z).  Enter the title of the journal and click "search."  If it is peer-reviewed, it will have an icon that resembles a referee's jersey.

If you're still unsure or if you have problems verifying the journal in Ulrich's, feel free to ask a librarian or Dr. Kaul.

**Help! There's no link to the full text!**

In most cases, just because there's no full-text link right there, that doesn't mean you can't get the article, often right away! Here's how to get your hands on the full text of any article you find:

1. If there's a full-text link in the database you're in, just click on it!

2. If you don't see a full-text link, go to the library homepage and select "Augustana's Periodicals." Enter the journal's title to see if the full text is available somewhere else.

3. If Augustana doesn't own the article you're looking for, click on "Interlibrary Loan" under "Library Services" on the homepage. It's free, and you'll usually get the article within 3-5 days.

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Need help? Ask a librarian!

Visit the reference desk on the 2nd floor of the library, call 309-794-7206, IM a librarian from the library homepage, or e-mail libraryinfo@augustana.edu.

Created by Anne Earel, Reference Librarian. Updated December 2008.