A Fictitious Social Science Interdisciplinary Pathfinder

 

An Example of EARR Pathfinder Format

(not length, just format!)

 

Compiled by Kara Whatley, Teaching and Reference Associate,
from actual EARR Student Projects and her own imagination

 

Scope

 

In today’s digital age it is becoming more and more possible to conduct research without stepping inside the walls of a traditional library, and the traditional pathfinder can now be extended to aid researchers in finding online resources and resources held by various libraries. This pathfinder is intended to serve as an example of the pathfinder format to all EARR students so that they may more easily construct their final projects.

 

[NOTE:  Your statement of scope should clearly define your topic, state the purpose of your pathfinder, and specify your intended audience.  It should be written in the third-person with an academic tone.]

 

Vocabulary

 

Information on the social sciences can be found in a variety of library catalogs, databases, as well as Internet-based search engines.  These locations provide access to information of varying quality, and many require using specific search terms and techniques.  Below is a list of recommended search locations for the social sciences along with useful search terms and techniques specific to that location.

 

Library Catalogs

 

Most libraries now allow searchers to access their “card catalogs” via the World Wide Web.  These terms can be used in almost all library catalogs.  Suggested catalogs included the Library of Congress and the University of Oklahoma Libraries.

 

Search the catalogs with these Library of Congress subject headings:

 

·        Social Sciences

·        Sociology

·        Socialization

·        Child psychology

 

An Advanced Search using both sociology and socialization provides very good information for this topic.

 

Sometimes keyword searches are useful to find more information on this topic.  Try searching with these keywords:

 

·        social sciences

·        globalization

·        grief

·        childhood

 

 

A search of “grief and childhood” provides very useful results for this topic.

 

Browsing the library shelves can also help to find more information on this topic.  Browse virtual library shelves by performing a call number search in the following Library of Congress call number areas.

 

·        HQ 783

·        LC 192.4

 

Web Search Engines

There is a wealth of information about organizational development available online.  However, one should always remember that not all of the available information is reliable or unbiased.  One way that is useful in assessing a site's information quality is to examine the URL address of the Web page.  URL's can often tell you a lot about the person or organization responsible for the page's content.  For more information about finding quality information on the Internet see Swisher and Goodson, Finding and Evaluating Quality Information through the Internet.   

 

The following search engines found useful information about organizational development.  Search with the following terms: 

 

·    jobs in organizational development

·       organizational consultants

·       organizational development network

·       organizational bibliography

·       organizational development articles

·       organizational development resources

·       organizational leadership

 

Try combining these keyword terms by enclosing them in quotation marks and adding an "and" in between like this: 

 

"organizational consultants" and "organizational development articles"

 

This search engine ranks searches by popularity.  However, the annotations that it provides are not clearly presented.

 

Northern Light is one of the Web's largest search engines and provides various special searching features including a power search, search limits, and a searchable collection of non-Web documents.  Retrieval is ranked by relevance.

 

 

Indexing and Abstracting Services

 

The databases listed below serve as an additional source of information in the social sciences.  Although some of these databases provide citations to speeches, books, and reports, most of the citations contained here are for journal articles.  You must be affiliated with the University of Oklahoma to access most of these online versions of indexing and abstracting tools.

 

·        ERIC

ERIC is the Educational Resource Information Center of the U.S. Department of Education.  ERIC covers educational literature from 1966 to the present and contains citations and abstracts for books, theses, course curriculi, standards and guidelines, and conference papers as well as journal articles.  Its print counterparts are Resources in Education and Current Index to Journals in Education.  ERIC can be accessed for free at http://www.accesseric.org/searchdb/dbchart.html and is also a database available through the OU Libraries licensing of the FirstSearch service.

 

     Suggested vocabulary for searching ERIC:

 

            Subject terms:

                            Library Material Selection

          Library Collection Development

          Electronic Journals

          Electronic Publishing

Using the Advanced search feature, a search of “library material selection” and “electronic journals” both as exact subject headings provides very useful results.

 

Keyword terms:

           Electronic resources

    Selection

    Collection development

    

 

·        Expanded Academic ASAP

Expanded Academic ASAP is a general academic database that covers the social sciences, arts and humanities, and the sciences produced by the Gale Group.  It allows full-text access to scholarly journal articles, newspapers, and magazines from 1980 to the present.

 

Suggested vocabulary for searching Expanded Academic ASAP:

 

      Subject terms:

                Databases- Evaluation

                Databases- Analysis

      Keyword terms:

                Electronic databases

       Evaluation

       Selection

      

Print Resources

 

Although many people today rely mostly on the online accessibility of all information, much of the information available about human service organizations is available in print.  Listed below are selected books, theses, dissertations, government documents, and journal articles.

 

Books

 

Books included in this section were published between 1995 and 2000.  Although there have been many more books published on human service organizations, these books represent some of the most current information available to date.

 

Bell, Robert A.  Assessing Health and Human Service Needs: concepts, methods and applications.  New York: Human Sciences Press, 2000. LC: RA427 .A74 1983   Dewey: 362.1 2000.

Included in this book is information on issues such as Community Health Services, Community Mental Health Services, health surveys, and health services research.

 

DeFranco, M. and Donna L. Ferullo.  Human Service Organizations and Their Publications: a directory of selected sources.  Alexandria, Va.:  Council on Social Work Education, 1996.  LC: HV89 .H849 1996 Dewy: 361/.0025/73 20.

“Topics included in this book relate to Directories of Human Services in the United States, a Bibliography of Human Services in the United States and Human Services in the United States.” 

[from:  Watson, James M.  “Human Service Organizations and Their Publications: a directory of Selected Sources.  Review.”  Choice 43.4 (1996): 296.]

 

Hansfeld, Yeheskel.  Human Service Organizations.  Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1997.  LC: HV40 .H334 1997.

Mr. Hansfeld has authored and co-authored many book on the subject of Health Service Organizations.

 

 

Dissertations and Theses

 

Theses and dissertations listed below were produced by students at the two preeminent Chechnyan War research facilities: the Naval Postgraduate School, and the Army War College Strategic Studies Institute.

 

Blank, S.J. and E.H. Tilford. “Russia's Invasion of Chechnya – A Preliminary Assessment.”  Thesis.  Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, 1995.

 

Sumner, D.L.  “Success of Terrorism in War – The Case of Chechnya.” Dissertation.  Naval Postgraduate School, 1998.

 

Turner, J.L.  “Russia’s War in Chechnya – Testing Democracy in the    Crucible of War.”  Dissertation.  Naval Postgraduate School, 1997.

 

Government Documents

 

Included below is a selective list of documents that reflects the most recent and most comprehensive government information available on the American drug industry.

 

United States Senate.  “Earning a failing grade: a report card on 1999 drug manufacturer price inflation: staff report to the Special Committee on Aging.” Washington: G.P.O., 2000.

 

United States House of Representatives.  “Reauthorization of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act and FDA reform : hearing before the Subcommittee on Health and Environment of the Committee on Commerce.”  Washington: G.P.O., 1997.

 

Journal Articles

 

Articles listed below provide a “comprehensive and objective view of the current state of the drug industry” according to Dr. Stuart Gildenstern, a noted physician and FDA advisor: 

 

Gildenstern, Stuart.  “The American Drug Industry: a review of current research.”  Journal of Pharmacological Science 15.3 (1999): 24-30.

 

Pifferi, G. and A. Mannucci.  “Drug impurities: problems and regulations.”  Journal of the American Medical Association 138.10 (1999): 501-509.

 

Berridge, J.C.  “Impurities in drug substances and drug products: new approaches to quantification and qualification.”  Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis 14.1-2 (1998): 7-12.

 

Online Resources

 

There are many online sources of information concerning violence against police officers.  Included below is a selective list of sites that provide reliable information.  For more online information, try searching the search engines listed above.

 

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. ( http://www.1nleomf.com )

 

This site also provides numerous facts and figures on law enforcement officers killed while on duty. It gives a history of police officer deaths broken down by years and states.

 

 

Greg Meyer page.  ( http://home.earthlink.net/gregmeyer/ )

 

Mr. Meyer's page contains training material and resources available to combat job related injuries and deaths. Different topics are discussed and resources available to the police officer.