ANG 6490
Library Resources in Cultural Anthropology
Librarian: Ken Frankel
January 29, 2007
 

I. Locating books in the Library:

1. FAU Library Catalog   The following types of basic searches are available:

 

1. Search for Keyword(s): Searches for terms anywhere they appear in the catalog record. Search terms can be truncated with a ? e.g. anthropol? will search for anthropology, anthropologist, anthropological, etc.
    

2. Browse Organized Lists: Use this search when you already know an author, title or subject heading. Some of the available options include:

   • Author’s Name: last name first, you don’t need to capitalize
   • Title: if a title starts with “The,” “A,” or “An,” omit that and skip to the next word
   • Subject, LC: must be entered in a very specific manner according the LC Subject Headings. You may get a cross-reference to use another term
   • If you're not finding anything with a subject search try a keyword search instead.
      
3. Journals/Serials: This search lets you know if the Library has a certain journal or magazine. However, it does not search for articles in journals. To do this use a database instead (see below). After searching for a journal title, click on the "Location" line to see which dates the Library owns. (Note: not all electronic journals we have access to are listed in the catalog . There is also a link to a list of all electronic journals available at FAU.)

The Advanced search screen allows you to combine terms using "and, or, not" as well as limiting a search by location, date, format, or language.

II. Searching for articles in databases

To search for articles click on "Indexes/Databases."  There are both alphabetical and subject listings of databases. The Library provides access to several major anthropology databases: Anthropology Plus, AnthroSource and Human Relations Area Files: eHRAF Collection of Ethnography, as well as a number of others which contain anthropological material such as JSTOR and Social Sciences Full Text. 

Note: when using these databases from off-campus you must log in through the Off-Campus Connect  link. You will need to enter the number from your Owl Card in order to do this. The SFX system allows you to link to external sources such as other databases holding the full text of the article, the Library's catalog, the list of FAU's electronic journals, ILLIAD requesting, etc.

1. Anthropology Plus

Comprises the highly respected Anthropological Literature from Harvard University  and Anthropological Index, Royal Anthropological Institute from the UK. Anthropology Plus provides extensive worldwide indexing of journal articles, reports, commentaries, edited works, and obituaries in the fields of social, cultural, physical, biological, and linguistic anthropology, ethnology, archaeology, folklore, material culture, and interdisciplinary studies.   

2. Anthrosource      

Provides digital access to current issues regarding 11 of the AAA's most critical peer-reviewed publications, and a complete electronic archive of all AAA journals through 2003.

3. Human Relations Area Files: eHRAF Collection of Ethnography:

This database provides in-depth information on all aspects of the cultural and social lives of  many of the world’s ethnic cultures, drawn from a variety of source documents including books, articles and dissertations.

4. JSTOR

Contains full-text backfiles of over 500 scholarly journals, including anthropology, archaelogy, sociology, religion, and regional studies. Usually includes complete run of a journal title except for the most recent five years.

5. Social Sciences Full Text

Coverage includes a wide range of interdisciplinary fields covered in a broad array of social sciences journals including anthropology titles.

6. Sociological Abstracts

Abstracts and indexes the international literature in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences.

7.  Web of Science

Includes the Social Sciences Citation Index, which allows for cited reference searches as well as traditional searches, independently or in combination.

8. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses

Covers every doctoral dissertation completed in the U.S. at accredited institutions for the last 150 years. Includes some master's theses and foreign language dissertations.

9. RefWorks

With RefWorks, users can create their own personal database by importing references from online databases.  They can use these references in writing their papers and automatically format the paper and the bibliography in seconds. For a tutorial to RefWorks, see The Bare Bones Beginner's Guide to RefWorks

 

IV. Citing your References

APA style is the way to format research papers based on the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2001) This book is available in the Ready Reference area and on 3 hour reserve (BF 76.7 P83 2001). Many quick reference guides to APA & other styles are available on the Internet. An example from Purdue University is:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html

V. Research Assistance

Ask A Librarian Email and chat reference help

Reference desk phone number: 561-297-3785

Make an appointment with a librarian: One-on-one reference consultation

For further assistance, contact:

Ken Frankel, M.Ed., MLIS (frankel@fau.edu)
Library Reference Dept. (297-0079)