Many beginning researchers are tempted to assume that all the information they could possibly need is readily available on the Internet from a home connection. However, it is a good idea to begin almost any research project with the sources available in your college library.
Reference librarians
The purpose of a college reference library is to help students find information—and the staff of your library, especially reference librarians, will willingly help you figure out how to get started, what resources to choose for your project, and how to research more effectively. When in doubt, ask your librarian! You can make an appointment to talk with a librarian about your research project and get specific recommendations about databases and other helpful places to begin your research. In addition, many libraries have online tours and chat environments where students can ask questions about their research.
Catalogs and databases
Your library’s computers hold many resources not accessible to students except through the library’s system. In addition to the library’s own catalog of books and other holdings, most college libraries also subscribe to a large number of databases—electronic collections of information, such as indexes to journal and magazine articles, texts of news stories and legal cases, lists of sources on particular topics, and compilations of statistics—that students can access for free.
Reference works
Consulting general reference works is another good way to get started on a research project. These works are especially helpful for getting an overview of a topic, identifying subtopics, finding more specialized sources, and identifying useful keywords for electronic searches.
TALKING THE TALK
“Why doesn’t my instructor want me to use Wikipedia as a source?” Wikis are sites that users can add to and edit as they see fit; as a result, their contents are not always reliable. It’s true that Wikipedia, a hugely popular site, has such a large and enthusiastic audience that users are likely to catch mistakes and remove deliberately false information quickly. But you can never be certain that a wiki entry has not been tampered with. Use wikis as sources for preliminary research and then make sure that you double-check any information you find there.
ENCYCLOPEDIAS
Encyclopedias offer general background on a subject and often include bibliographies that can point you to more specialized sources. Remember that encyclopedias will serve as a place to start your research—not as major sources for a research project.
BIOGRAPHICAL RESOURCES
The lives and historical settings of famous people are the topics of biographical dictionaries and indexes.
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
Bibliographies are collections of resources available on a subject—for example, Shakespeare or World War II. Bibliographies may be databases or bound collections, and they may list books alone, both books and articles, or media such as film or video. A bibliography may simply list or describe each resource it includes, or it may include analysis of the resources.
ALMANACS, YEARBOOKS, AND ATLASES
Almanacs and yearbooks contain data on current events and statistical information. Look in an atlas for maps and other geographic data.