Accessing a Range of Reliable Encyclopedias
- Encyclopedias Online: Use Subject Encyclopedias to Understand Your TopicThis online guide links to a wide variety of reliable subject encyclopedias purchased by the library.
Reference Databases
- Gale Virtual Reference LibraryYou can search for reliable background articles on social sciences and humanities topics in this full-text database of reference encyclopedias.
- Oxford ReferenceAnother full-text database of reliable information from reference works (encyclopedias and dictionaries) published by Oxford University Press.
- Sage Reference OnlineA searchable, full-text database of reference works that focuses on the applied social sciences.
Finding the Cultural, Historical, Political, and Social Context
Biography:
- American National BiographyProfiles of more than 19,000 notable American men and women from all eras of U.S. history who are no longer alive. The ANB Online features thousands of illustrations, more than 80,000 hyperlinked cross-references and bibliographies of interviews, biographies, and archival sources. Articles are added and updated regularly.
Cities and History:
- The Encyclopedia of New York City"...although every one of the 1.3 million words in this book has been read by the editor in chief, the executive editor, and one or more copy editors and fact checkers..., the encyclopedia is certain to contain errors. The editor accepts responsibility for them all and asks that corrections and suggestions be sent to him at the Department of History, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027." --from the Preface to the first edition
- Oxford Encylopedia of American Urban History"[A] thematic and chronological overview of American urban history from the pre-Columbian era until the beginning decades of the twenty-first century. The 92 articles collected here describe and analyze the transformation of the United States from a simple agrarian and small-town society to a complex urban and suburban nation. Each essay has been authored, peer-reviewed, and edited by scholars expert in the field." -- from the publisher's description
Narrative and Race:
Encyclopedia of Race and RacismCall Number: OnlineISBN: 0028661958Publication Date: 2nd edition, 2013.Search narrative within the online version of this encyclopedia to find articles on the relationship between historical events and the way they are represented.
Media Literacy:
- International Encyclopedia of Media LiteracyCall Number: OnlinePublication Date: 2019Articles in this encyclopedia offers a perspective on the past, present and future of media literacy around the world. Media literacy encompasses a truly vast range of issues, including participatory culture, digital learning, civic engagement, the impact of media on children, the sociocultural and political dimensions of literacy education, the role of media in shaping social identity, activism, digital teaching and learning, the role of media in shaping health behavior, the impact of news on society, and adolescent development,
Narrative Theory:
The Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative TheoryCall Number: OnlinePublication Date: 2005A detailed, scholarly treatment of various approaches to narrative theory.
Reading Citations in Bibliographies
Learn how to tell the difference between a book, a journal or magazine article, and an article in a book in a reference list/bibliography in this 90-second video. Research Minutes: Reading Citations.