Library Session with Elana Broch
Stokes Library
November 13, 2006
The three four five things I want you to remember from my visit to your class.
1. Research is a process. It is rarely a linear process. It can be serendipitous. Think about how you’re going to organize your work. Laptop, index cards, xeroxing/printing, palm pilot, etc.
2. I am here to help you locate materials and help you find a topic for your paper that is interesting to you and do-able. There are many other librarians here, too.
3. Not everything is on the Internet; you will find things using library databases that are not on the we
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4. Controlled vocabulary is a great tool. Google has many wonderful features, but controlled vocabulary is not one of them.
5. The e-journal finder works if you have a citation OR within many of the databases we have access to (such as Sociological Abstracts). It will help you locate the full-text of an article, if we have it in our library system.
Getting started with reference books
Encyclopedias
Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, Volumes 1 - 3 (2000).
Detroit: Gale Group. Preview Table of Contents online or check out PU Catalog Record
Encyclopedia of American Immigration (2001). James Ciment, Editor. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe. Table of Contents
Encyclopedia of North American Immigration (2005). J. Powell. NY: Facts of File, Inc.
Facts about American Immigration (2001). D.M. Brownstone and I.M. Franck. NY: H.W. Wilson.
Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups. (1980) S. Thernstrom, Editor. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press
Statistical References (population data, etc.; great footnotes)
Statistical Abstract and other resources on “Uncle Sam’s Reference Shelf” (including state and local data).
They are also available in print in many PU libraries.
Getting started finding books 
Search by keyword using the online “card catalog”
Search by Subject heading using the online “card catalog”
Possible subject headings include
Children of immigrants—United States
Specific Ethnic Groups
See your blue card “Controlled Vocabulary 1: Subject Headings in PU Library Catalog”
Exercise: Find Remix in the PU Library catalog. What are its Subject Headings? Do any of those Subject Headings sound interesting to you? Find another book that has at least one of the same Subject Headings as that book. Does it look like it might be helpful for your research paper?
Optional Homework: Try the "Captivate" tutorial for help learning to use the online “card catalog”
Getting started finding articles (Searching a database for journal articles)
We will use Sociological Abstracts but there are many more to choose from
The thesaurus is on the "Search Tools" tab.
Possible thesaurus terms:
Immigrants
See your blue card (“Controlled Vocabulary 2: Thesaurus Terms/Descriptors in Sociological Abstracts.”)
Note: Terms you search from the thesaurus are the Descriptors in the citations you find.
Citing Sources
Each discipline has its own preferred style
Consider learning EndNote or Refworks (bibliographic citation managers)
