Social Theory

1
Social Theory

• Finding Sources
• Beyond Background Information
• SOC 336
• Becky Canovan
• bcanovan_at_dbq.edu

2
Goals for Today

• Discuss the assignment
• What kind of information do you need? And how
  much do you need?
• Locate sources by and about your theorist
• Find books at UD
• Find articles and essays
• Find books from other libraries

3
What do we need?

• Assignment
• What does the assignment ask us to do?
• What kinds of sources do we need?
• Make sure the essay for part 3 has something to
  do with the theory you describe in part 2
• Use your textbook as a source for comparison
• Tips and Tricks
• Use what you already know about the theorist
• What does your textbook already tell you?
• Librarians and your professor can help you with
  the process. Dont be afraid to ask questions!
  Its part of the academic process.

4
Searching the Catalog

• Search using theorists name
• General Keyword, Subject Keyword, Author
  Keyword---Whats the difference?
• Too many results? Try adding another keyword
• Make note of the collection call number
• Is the book on the shelf??
• Features in the catalog
• Email in MLA format (close to APA)
• Table of contents, summary, Amazon links

5
No books? Try WorldCat

• WorldCat lists books/materials from thousands of
  libraries
• We can request books from any of these libraries
  and have it sent here
• Only interlibrary loan items you KNOW will help
  you

6
Searching for articles/essays

• Specialized databases/library search engines
• SocINDEX, PsycINFO, ERIC, Lit Resource Center
• Keyword vs. Subject searching
• Email results in APA
• FindIt/Full-text/articles we dont have

7
Youve found sources, now what?

• Use index, table of contents, chapter titles
• You dont have to read the whole book
• Take notes and highlight
• When you take notes, be sure to write down where
  the information came from.
• Use your textbook as a source for comparison of
  theories
• Remember, all the pieces of this paper should fit
  together. Are the all about the same theory? Do
  you mention that theory in the biography section?