Information Services

Research Databases for Anthropology

A research database is a collection of references - such as citations and abstracts of articles - for a particular subject area. Some research databases also contain the full-text of articles. The following databases are useful for research in Anthropology and are available to students, faculty, and staff at Connecticut College. Additional databases such as those covering religion, public affairs, history, economics, or medicine may also be useful for certain topics in Anthropology. Contact the Reference Desk for research assistance.

Anthropological Literature (produced by the Tozzer Library at Harvard University) describes articles and essays on anthropology and archaeology, including art history, demography, economics, psychology, and religious studies. Updated quarterly, Anthropological Literature indexes articles two or more pages long in works published in English and other European languages from the late 19th century to the present. Anthropological Literature is the most comprehensive database to use when searching for anthropology publications. Use "Refine" and "Limit" options to alter searches; use "History" option to combine results of previous searches. Use the "Notebook" option to save results from many searches in different sessions on one list. Limited to 3 simultaneous users within the CTW consortium.

Social Sciences Abstracts is an index to articles in scholarly journals in the social sciences, covering publications from 1984 to the present. Most records include an abstract describing the contents of the article and some include the full text of the article (look for the camera or page icons). Provides broad coverage in the social sciences including anthropology, area studies, community health and medical care, economics, family studies, minority studies, planning and public administration, policy sciences, psychology, social work and public welfare, sociology, urban studies, women's studies, and related subjects. This is an excellent resource for locating articles on a broad range of topics.

Sociological Abstracts is a comprehensive, index with citations and abstracts to worldwide findings in theoretical and applied sociology, social science, and policy science. Entries cover sociological aspects of broad topics including anthropology, collective behavior, community development, medicine and health, racial interactions, and social psychology. Sociological Abstracts is fundamental for interdisciplinary research in social sciences issues and for practitioners seeking the sociological perspective on various disciplines. It includes coverage of more than 2000 major journals as well as articles in collective volumes (essays, proceedings, etc.), books, book reviews, conference proceedings, dissertations, and other publications. Indexing begins in 1963.

Web of Science - Social Sciences Citation Index is a multidisciplinary database, with searchable author abstracts, covering the journal literature of the social sciences. Besides the traditional author, and keyword search, Web of Science includes cited reference searching which lets you use a given work as if it were a subject term to identify more recent articles on the same topic. For example, you can find all works that reference articles published by A. Williamson in 1995 in the Journal of Social Work. This type of searching often locates relevant articles that cannot be retrieved through traditional subject-author searching. This ability is key in doing a complete literature search on a focused topic. Coverage is 1996 forward. Limited to 2 simultaneous users.

Expanded Academic Index provides broad coverage from the arts and humanities to social sciences, science and technology, this database meets research needs across all academic disciplines. It also offers good coverage of interdisciplinary topics. Provides indexing for scholarly journals, news magazines, and newspapers - many with full-text and images. Indexing begins in 1980 and most citations provide abstracts. The search interface allows you to limit your search to refereed or scholarly publications.

InfoTrac OneFile is a one-stop source for news and periodical articles on a wide range of topics including interdisciplinary studies. While not as focused on academic topics as Expanded Academic Index, it does offer broad coverage and offers the option of limiting searches to refereed or scholarly journals. Many full-text articles are available, some with images. Indexing begins in 1980.

Lexis Nexis provides quick and easy full-text access to a wide range of American and international newspapers. This service is the exclusive online archival source for The New York Times and provides full-text access back to June 1, 1980. Full-text searching and retrieval is also available for such leading news resources as The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Business Week, Fortune, and The Economist as well as national network and regional television broadcast transcripts and major news services of China, France, Germany, Japan,
Mexico, the UK, and Russia. To locate items from the New York Times and other major newspapers, select General News. For regional newspapers or to search newspapers from a specific state, select U.S. News. In the Reference category of the present revision of Lexis-Nexis resources is data from the Roper Public Opinion Center.

HAPI Online is a bibliography of authoritative, worldwide information about Central and South America, Mexico, the Caribbean basin, the United States-Mexico border region, and Hispanics in the United States. From analyses of current political, economic, and social issues to unique coverage of Latin American arts and letters, HAPI Online contains complete bibliographic citations to articles, book reviews, documents, original literary works, and other materials appearing in more than 400 key social science and humanities journals published throughout the world from 1970 to the present. Use the thesaurus of subject headings to maximize your search.

HLAS (Handbook of Latin American Studies) Online is a bibliography on Latin America consisting of works selected and annotated by scholars. The Caribbean Basin is included. Edited by the Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress, the multidisciplinary Handbook alternates annually between the social sciences and the humanities. Each year, more than 130 academics from around the world choose over 5,000 works for inclusion in the Handbook. Continuously published since 1935, the Handbook offers Latin Americanists an essential guide to available resources. Updated monthly, HLAS Online provides rapid, comprehensive access to future, current, and retrospective volumes of the Handbook. HLAS Online is best suited for quick literature searches, and Spanish-language access.

Contemporary Women's Issues (health and human rights) provides access to global information on women in over 150 countries. Indexes books, journals, newsletters, research reports from non-profit groups, government and international agencies, and fact sheets. Includes links to full-text articles for most articles with indexing beginning in 1992. Covers topics such as development, pay equity, education, politics, family life, reproductive rights, gender equity, violence and exploitation, and women's legal status.

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