When searching for articles or books in our databases, the best research method is using KEYWORDS.
When conducting research on any ethnic group you must consider the range of labels we use to identify ourselves/them. Chicano or Mexican American can be used but also consider Hispanic or Latino. For other Latino groups use the specific Latino population like Puerto Rican, Cubans, Dominican Republic, etc. Lastly, remember to review the Subject identifiers for possible keywords in your book and article searching.
What does the "X" mean in research?
The usage of the "x", i.e. Chicanx or Latinx, is recent. While you may find some very current items using the "x" in your keyword searching, you could be missing out of some very important foundational materials. Make sure you understand what the "x" means. In research, as described above, you need to use an array of terms. When seeking gender identity along with an ethnic population use a combination of terms. For example: Queer and Hispanic and family; Cisgender and Latino and education; Lesbian and Mexican American and support groups, etc. The keyword search searches the body of the abstract and the title. So unless the author uses the "x" in their description, you may miss out on resources. Explore all your options!
Reference tool for U.S. and Canadian history and culture. With full-text coverage of hundreds of journals and books, and selective indexing for journals from 1863 to present.
Web of Science is a citation database that covers three major tools: Science Citation Index Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, and Arts & Humanities Citation Index. The complete database covers thousands of scholarly journals from 1975 to the present across a broad range of disciplines. Included in the subscription: Journal Citation Reports and Essential Science Indicators (ESI). Use the ESI Help Guide and JCR Help Guide to learn more.
There are many databases and print indexes to choose from for your research. Depending on your topic and time period you may have to use an array of resources. Given that Chicano/Latino studies is an interdisplinary study, there is no one source that will give you everything in one. So you will need to be creative. Historical period materials may only be accessible in a print index and not available online. Print indexes are located in the Reference Area or in the Library Stacks. An often overlooked resource is the bibliography that can be found at the end of related journal articles or in books on your topic. Stop by the Reference Desk for help.
Where to Start?
Academic Search Complete provides an excellent coverage of popular and scholarly articles, mostly full-text, in the Social Sciences and Humanities areas. A good place to start on most topics. For just scholarly/peer review articles, you will need to "Limit your results". See image to where to limit
Multidisciplinary full text, peer reviewed academic journals that support scholarly research in key areas of academic study.
Use the Journal search through OneSearch to locate an article via the name of a journal. Click here.
ERIC is the education database. It has great depth of resources. Be aware that this database includes more than just articles - it also includes books, book chapters, government reports, conference papers, and school district reports (all states not just California). Remember to limit your search only to journal articles. See image. View other Education resources for your research.
In addition to ASP, the advance tool in the area of Sociology is Sociological Abstracts. NOTE: This is not a full-text database but it does offer links to articles that we have online journal subscriptions to. This database includes more than just articles. Click on "Advance Search" to allow you to limit just for articles. See image. Another excellent database is JSTOR. This is a full-text database, however, this database does not offer recent publications. Changes are that after searching ASP and Sociology Abstracts you will have located most of the materials you need. See guide on Sociology for additional resources.
The journals archive consists of older (at least 2-5 years) issues of core scholarly journals across a wide range of subjects including the arts, humanities, and social sciences. The eBook collections are DRM-free and allow for unlimited concurrent use and unlimited chapter downloads and printing.
America: History & Life is the database to use. It is an advance tool - meaning your searches will give more than just articles but also dissertations, books, book chapters, and conference papers. If you only want articles limit to Peer Review. If you want an article that covers a specific time period, limit to Historical Period. Make sure to also review the Library Catalog for books. See guide on History for additional resources.
In addition to ASP, MLA is the database for this area. See guide on English & Comparative Literature for additional resources.
PsycInfo is an excellent database for psychology literature. However, this database too includes more than just articles, it also includes books, book chapters, conference papers, and more. Apply the limit to Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals. For additional databases in the area of Psychology see guide.
PsycEXTRA, produced by the American Psychological Association (APA), is a bibliographic and full-text companion to the scholarly PsycINFO database. Document types include technical, annual and government reports, conference papers, newsletters, magazines, newspapers, consumer brochures and more. Extensive coverage of gray literature relating to psychology and the behavioral sciences.
Want to know who is referencing a participart work? Web of Science is an advance tool for researchers. See tutorial to learn how to get the most of this tool.