University of Oregon Libraries
University of Oregon Libraries

Sociology

The following is a selected list of resources for starting research in Sociology. For further assistance, contact Miriam Rigby, Sociology Librarian, at rigby@uoregon.edu

Starting Your Research

These sources can help you identify a topic for your research. Some provide an overview of a specific issue and suggest other materials which might be useful for your research. Others help you to notice a topic that might be of interest to you.

  • Annual Reviews in Sociology; KNIGHT REFERENCE HM 1 .A78
    Use this resource to get an idea for a topic that's been thoroughly researched. If an article interests you, you'll have a good start on references to follow-up on. The last five years are located in the Reference area.
  • Contemporary Sociology KNIGHT REFERENCE HM 1 .C65
    This is journal of book reviews of Sociology books. It is online from 1972 (volume 1) through five years ago. It is available in print in the reference section of the library. Each volume is divided by subject and there is a cumulative index for each year. This is an excellent place to start your research and to look for current work in Sociology.
  • Subject Encyclopedias
    Look at encyclopedias. The ones for sociology are located in KNIGHT REFERENCE in the HM-HQ section. They provide essay type articles and a list of citations. A few titles include:
    • Encyclopedia of Sociology. Edgar F. Borgatta. [KNIGHT REFERENCE HM 17 .E5 1992 - 4 volumes]
    • Encyclopedia of American Social History. Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn, Peter W. Williams. [KNIGHT REFERENCE HN 57 .E58 1993 - 3 volumes]
    • Encyclopedia of Human Intelligence. Robert J. Sternberg. [KNIGHT REFERENCE BF 431 .E59 1994]
    • Encyclopedia of Marriage and the Family. David Levinson. [KNIGHT REFERENCE HQ 9 .E52 1995 - 2 volumes]
  • Journals; Current Periodicals
    Browse through the table of contents of current sociology journals. These are kept on the second floor in the Current Periodicals Room. Most Sociology journals will be in the HM-HQ section.

Finding Articles

To look for articles in journals, newspapers, or magazines, you will need to start with an index. An index will allow you to look by subject or a few keywords which describe your topic or by author. Listed below are some of the major and related indexes for topics in sociology. Once you find articles, you can either click on the button in the individual citation or go to the FindText link on the library homepage.

  • Sociological Abstracts
    For a more sociological perspective, use Sociological Abstracts. Citations are included from 1963 to the present, with abstracts included from 1974 to the present. The database is updated six times a year.
  • Academic Search Premier
    ASE provides full text for over 1,250 academic, social sciences, humanities, general science, education and multi-cultural journals. In addition to the full text, this database offers indexing and abstracts for nearly 2,880 journals. Over 700 of the over 1,250 full text journals are peer reviewed. Over 1,670 of the indexed journals are peer reviewed. Full text backfiles go as far back as January of 1990, while indexing and abstract backfiles go as far back as January of 1984. This is a good database to use if your topic is multidisiplinary .
  • SAGE Family Studies Abstracts
    SAGE Family Studies Abstracts abstracts articles, reports, books and other materials on policy, theory and research relating to the family, traditional and alternative lifestyles, therapy and counselling.
  • PsycINFO
    PsycINFO is the database for Psychology. It covers the professional and academic literature in psychology and related disciplines including medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, and others from 1872 to the present. Coverage is worldwide, and includes references and abstracts to over 1300 journals, dissertations, book chapters and books. Over 57,000 references are added annually and it's updated monthly.
  • AgeLine
    AgeLine, produced by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), covers topics in social gerontology -- the study of aging in social, psychological, health-related, and economic contexts. It includes citations and abstracts to books, journal and magazine articles, and research reports. The database includes English-language material since 1978.
  • Alternative Press Index
    API provides indexing for over 200 alternative and radical publications. It includes numerous titles on the environment, gay/lesbian issues, native peoples, seniors, and women. Indexing is available from 1991 to the present.
  • Ethnic NewsWatch
    Ethnic NewsWatch contains the complete text of articles, editorials, and reviews published in approximately 200 ethnic and minority newspapers, magazines and journals published in the U.S, dating back to the mid-1990s. Ethnic Newswatch is searchable in both English and Spanish.
  • Contemporary Women's Issues
    CWI provides full-text access to global information on women. Journals, newsletters, research reports from non-profit groups, government and international agencies, along with fact sheets are easily accessed through CWI. Information on women in over 150 countries is compiled in a single collection bringing together such disciplines as sociology, psychology, health, education and human rights.
  • Web of Science
    The Web of Science provides access to both the Science Citation Index (SCI) Expanded and Social Science Citation Index (SSCI), from 1996 to the present. The database can be searched to look for words in article titles, by author, and to look for cited references.

Finding Books

To find books search a catalog! If you want materials on a certain topic do a keyword and/or subject search; or if you already know the author or title you can also search by them.
  • UO Libraries Catalog
    Identify books by topic, title or author; identify journals and magazines owned by the UO Libraries. To find journal articles on your topic, use the databases listed in the section above. Once you have a citation, you can check the library catalog by doing a title search on the name of the journal to see if we have it here.
    • If the UO Libraries does not own the journal, fill out an interlibrary loan form to request a copy of the article from another library.
    • If the UO Libraries does not own the book, or other material you want, try Summit or WORLDCAT and request through them.

  • Summit Catalog
    Summit is the catalog of a consortium of libraries in the Pacific Northwest whose combined collections greatly exceed the size of the UO Libraries collection. Request books and other materials (but not journal articles) through Summit if the UO copy is checked out, missing, or if UO doesn't own a copy.
    • Delivered within 3 *working* days or less
    • 3 week checkout period with renewal option
    • Free service for UO students, faculty, and staff
    • Click on REQUEST THIS ITEM link when looking at full record to borrow material from another Summit Library.

  • WorldCat
    Worldcat provides access to library catalogs from around the world AND you can request materials from most of them. The database contains more than 40 MILLION bibliographic records describing books, journals, maps, musical scores, manuscripts, etc. Once you are looking at the full record for an item you want you can request it by clicking on the ILL button (top button bar) and filling out the form. Delivery time varies, consult with the Reference Department or the Interlibrary Loan Department for more information.

How to Create Citations

Sociologists can use the American Sociological Association Style Guide to format citations for papers. Please see the overview and samples of the style.

Web Resources

Maintained by Miriam Rigby, rigby@uoregon.edu
Last Modified: 10/06/2008