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Searching and Information Resources for English Literature Research
- 1. Searching & Information Sources for English Literature Research EN4271 Research Workshop 1 September 2008 Presenter: Maggie Yin, Information Services, Central Library
- 2. Outline How to search and find information on English Literature materials using library resources? Research process Search strategies Using databases Citation styles EndNote
- 3. The Research Process The typical research process looks like this: Your Topic Break down your topic into concepts List keywords from the concepts Construct search statement from your keywords Search for materials such as books & articles. Use LINC & databases. Check if they are relevant Locate the materials in the library Find more sources by using references in the sources you have located Do you have sufficient sources for your assignment? Complete your assignment START HERE YES NO
- 4. Information Sources . Books Journal articles Conference papers E-resources (Databases etc) Newspapers Theses Dissertations Other internet sources Search
- 5. Building a search strategy Breakdown topic into main keywords/concepts List synonyms, broader/narrower terms, variant spellings Formulate search statement Refine/Broaden statement
- 6. Example of Research Topic Topic 1: The crisis of kingship in Shakespeare’s plays Concept 1: kingship Concept 2: Shakespeare Consider synonyms when searching LINC or databases, eg: Kingship = monarchial power, monarchial legitimacy
- 7. Example of Research Topic Topic 2: How is Auden’s Christianity manifested in his poetry Concept 1: Christianity Concept 2: Auden Consider synonyms when searching LINC or databases. Christianity = Anglicanism, Catholicism?
- 8. Refine your search: Boolean Operators AND is used to indicate that both terms must be present OR is used to indicate that either terms may be present NOT is used to indicate that one term must not be present kingship Shakespeare kingship Shakespeare Shakespeare kingship
- 9. Search Strategy: Asterisk, ( ) Use asterisk * for variant forms of a word eg. educat* = educate, education, educational… Use ( ) for grouping words eg. (kingship OR monarchial power) AND Shakespeare = kingship AND Shakespeare = monarchial power AND Shakespeare see powerpoint notes
- 10. Let’s Search The crisis of kingship in Shakespeare’s plays search statement: (kingship OR monarchial power) AND Shakespeare Topic 1 keywords keywords Kingship, monarchial power Shakespeare
- 11. Let’s Search How is Auden’s Christianity manifested in his poetry search statement: Christian* AND Auden Topic 2 keywords keywords Christian* Auden
- 12. LINC vs. Databases Use LINC to search for resources in the library’s collection, ie. books, journals, audio-visual materials, theses, etc. Use databases when you have a topic and want to search for journal articles (or book reviews, conference proceedings, etc). Most databases provide citations & abstracts and occasionally full-text articles.
- 14. Databases for English Literature Specialised databases Literature Online MLA International Bibliography (covers Language) General databases Humanities Abstracts Arts & Humanities Citation Index (via Web of Science) Project Muse (covers Humanities and Social Sciences) Expanded Academic ASAP Jstor (full-text articles but back issues only) Factiva (newspaper and newswire articles) PERIND (index database on Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei & ASEAN) Proquest Dissertations and Theses
- 15. Database in Action #1: Literature Online Covers more than 300,000 works of English and American poetry, prose and drama. The database also includes biographies, bibliographies; articles, monographs and dissertations from the Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature; literary criticism and reference sources. For a guide on Literature Online, check out: http://lion.chadwyck.com/marketing/students/stud_contents.jsp
- 16. Database in Action #1: Literature Online Search Literature Online using this search statement: (kingship or monarchial power) AND Shakespeare
- 17. Searching Literature Online (Topic 1)
- 18. Searching Literature Online (Topic 1)
- 19. Searching Literature Online (Topic 1)
- 20. Searching Literature Online (Topic 2)
- 21. Searching Literature Online (Topic 2)
- 22. Searching Journals in LINC see powerpoint notes
- 23. Database in Action #2:MLAIB A subject index of scholarly books and articles on modern languages, literatures, folklore and linguistics, compiled by the Modern Language Association of America. Coverage includes literature from all over the world as well as works on literature transmitted orally, in print, or in audio-visual media. For a guide on MLAIB, check out http://www.gale.cengage.com/pdf/navguide/MLAonInfotrac_nvg.pdf
- 24. Searching MLA International Bibliography
- 25. Searching MLA International Bibliography
- 26. Database in Action #3: Project Muse Project MUSE is a unique collaboration between libraries and publishers providing 100% full-text, affordable and user-friendly online access to over 380 high quality humanities and social sciences journals from over 60 scholarly publishers. For a guide on Project Muse, check out: http://muse.jhu.edu/about/resources/search_help.html
- 29. Database in Action #4: PERIND Produced by NUS Libraries, PERIND is an index to articles relating to Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and ASEAN (as an entity). It contains citations from more than 200 core titles of local and international journals. The subjects covered in the database range from the humanities and social sciences to business and management, architecture, building , science, technology, law and medicine.
- 30. Searching PERIND Topic: Theatre and censorship in Singapore (theat* or drama or play) and (censor* or controver*) and singapore
- 31. Searching PERIND
- 32. Searching PERIND
- 33. Searching Theses and Dissertations Foreign Theses LINC – Search Special Collection – Theses Collection ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (North American, full-text) Australian Digital Theses Database (full-text) Index to Theses with Abstracts accepted for Higher Degrees by the universities of Great Britain and Ireland (Abstracts) NUS Academic Exercises LINC – Advanced Keyword Search
- 34. Searching ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
- 35. Searching ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
- 36. Finding NUS Academic Exercises for Literature Access the “Advanced Keyword” search option in LINC Fill in the following fields :
- 37. Troubleshooting Your Search Results When searching databases, you may encounter: too many results use specific terms/keywords, apply limit search options, use AND operator too few results add synonyms, use OR operator too many irrelevant results exclude terms that are too general, use NOT operator no results use more general keywords, reduce number of keywords or redefine your research topic! Do note that searching databases can sometimes require much trial and error in order to refine your keywords If in doubt, do not despair! Check with your tutor or ask a librarian !
- 38. Materials Not Found in the Library Request for Document Delivery Services (DDS) - Request via E-Forms (Library Portal) - All requests must be approved by supervisor - Limit to 3 requests per year Use another library which has the item - letter of introduction from supervisor - call the library for conditions of access
- 39. To Google or Not to Google If you have an assignment to complete or thesis to write, can you use Google or Wikipedia? As initial research tools, they are usually fine. But outdated pages and broken links are common problems, and you can seldom be sure whether the information is accurate and authoritative . To do ‘proper’ research, you should be using authoritative sources which can be found in the library, either in print (eg. books & journals) or electronic format (eg. e-resources). see powerpoint notes
- 40. Citation & Copyright Why cite references? Back-up your arguments Acknowledge intellectual debt Show the research done Help readers clarify your claims Copyright Not more than 1 chapter or 10% of a published book Not more than 1 article from a journal issue
- 41. Citation Styles Style sheet for MLA http://www.english.uiuc.edu/cws/wworkshop/writer_resources/citation_styles/mla/mla.htm#authors Check LION (Library Instruction Online) for guide to citation styles http://libpweb1.nus.edu.sg/lion/s/citation.html see powerpoint notes
- 42. Interpreting References: Journal Article authors article title Ashcroft, Bill. 2007. Critical Utopias. Textual Practice 21 (3). 411- 431. year journal title volume (issue) pages see powerpoint notes
- 43. Interpreting References: Book Chapter author book chapter title Cheah, Pheng. 2008. Universal areas: Asian studies in a world of motion . In Revathi Krishnaswamy & John C. Hawley (ed.), The postcolonial and the global , 54-68. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. year publisher book title pages editors see powerpoint notes
- 44. What is A bibliographic management software that: stores and organizes references found from many sources eg. library catalogues, databases etc inserts these citations into a Word document, and automatically format your references according to a predefined citation style
- 45. Flow Process in EndNote Search and save References (eg. Literature Online) Microsoft Word “ Cite While You Write” Impor t Export Other citation styles MLA citation style
- 46. 7 Steps to Import Citations into your research paper Bring your laptop to Computer Centre to configure. Install EndNote on your PC/Laptop Create an EndNote Library Collect References Import into EndNote X2 Cite the References in Microsoft Word Change Citation Style
- 47. Collecting References/Citations Method 1 : Export citations via import filters (eg. MLA International Bibliography, LINC) Method 2 : Export citations directly to EndNote (eg. Literature Online, Project Muse) Method 3 : Manually enter a Reference (eg. PERIND)
- 48. Using EndNote Instructions on how to use EndNote can be found on Library Instruction Online (LION) page at: http://libpweb1.nus.edu.sg/web/appmanager/lib/desk?_nfpb= true&_pageLabel = page_LION Step by step guide for EndNote: http://libpweb1.nus.edu.sg/lion/e/endnoteGuide.html How to import references into EndNote: http://libpweb1.nus.edu.sg/lion/e/endnoteimport.html
- 49. Need Help? [email_address] (for general queries) Information desk (Central Library Level 5) Walk in [email_address] (for queries on English Language & Literature) Email 6516-2028 Phone
Editor's Notes
- #4: Note: When you start research, you need to do a literature review. Stress importance on being systematic thorough and patient in your research.
- #10: ( ) are used just like in algebra: commands inside the innermost parentheses are executed first.
- #23: If the library subscribes to the electronic version of a journal, you will see the hyperlinks “View the electronic version (full-text) via…” Our full text subscriptions are usually for the current 5 years or slightly more. Click on the hyperlinked CL Current Journals to check which issues are shelved at Current Journals.
- #40: How can you tell if the source is more authoritative than another? Look out for the author's name and credentials (degrees, achievements, designations, etc.), the sources used by the author, and presence/absence of peer review (where one’s work is checked by equals (peers) to ensure it meets specific criteria before it is published).
- #42: Check with your lecturer or tutor for the citation style that you should be using. Whether you use LSA, MLA or another citation style, the key point is consistency!
- #43: In LINC, search the journal title. The citation style used for this slide is based on the Linguistic Society of America’s Language Style Sheet.
- #44: In LINC, search the book title. The citation style used for this slide is based on the Linguistic Society of America’s Language Style Sheet.
- #47: Slides 1-4 : 10 minutes