GCSU Library Subject Guide
Sociology


Reference Sources         Subject Headings        Articles        Websites        Citing Sources        Contact A Librarian




Reference Sources
The Reference Collection, located on the second floor of the GCSU Library, is often the best place to start your research.  Books in the Reference Collection can help you become more familiar with your topic and assist you with identifying keywords and important people.  Bibliographies can help you identify specific articles and books.
    A Critical Dictionary of Sociology (Ref HM 17 .B6813 1989): This dictionary provides extensive essays on topics rather than brief definitions. Included are subjects such as alienation, charisma, crime, family, power, religion, suicide, and utopia.

    Encyclopedia of Sociology (Ref HM 17 .E5 1992): Written for a broad audience, this encyclopedia covers all aspects of sociology. Articles range from two to eighteen pages in length. Sample topics include: aggression, altruism, behaviorism, community, countercultures, discrimination, family and household structure, intellectuals, moral development, and socialization.

    Handbook of Sociology (Ref HM 51.H249 1988): This handbook seeks to cover sociology in a balanced and comprehensive manner, providing both historical and recent information. Topics include social structure, race and ethnicity, gender and sex roles, sociology of education, sociology of religion, and social movements.

    The HarperCollins Dictionary of Sociology (Ref HM 17 .J37 1991): provides brief definitions or entries for major sociological terms, influential sociologists, and important research methods.

    The International Encyclopedia of Sociology (Ref HM 17 .I53 1984): This encyclopedia contains brief entries on important concepts, terms, and individuals in the field of sociology.

    Women in Sociology (Ref HM 22 .U5 W66 1991): discusses the lives and work of important female sociologists from 1840 to 1990.

Subject Headings
Using the correct subject headings for your topic will help you get more relevant results when searching the Library Catalog.  Below is a concise list of subject headings for the field of Sociology.  For a more complete list, you can perform a Subject Heading search using the Exact Search feature in the Library Catalog.
    Art and society
    Clinical sociology
    Crime, Sociological aspects
    Economics, Sociological aspects
    Educational sociology
    Emotions, Sociological aspects
    Equality
    Historical sociology
    Human settlements
    Industrial sociology
    Information society
    Political sociology
    Race relations
    Religion and sociology
    Social conflict
    Social ethics
    Sociology
    Sociology, Field work
    Sociology, History
    Sociology, Methodology
    Sociology, Military
    Sociology, Philosophy
    Sociology, Research
    Sociology, Rural
    Sociology, Study and teaching
    Sociology, Urban
    Socialization
    Technology, Sociological aspects
    War and society

Articles
    Databases
    Most databases index articles from journals, newspapers, and magazines.  Some databases offer full text articles, while others contain only citations.  Some databases are subject specific, while others are more general in coverage.  Some databases relevant to the field of Sociology are:

      Academic Search Complete: is a multidisciplinary database that contains articles from academic journals and magazines in the humanities, the social sciences, and the general sciences.

      Applies Social Sciences Index and Abstracts: an indexing and abstracting database that serves as a comprehensive source of social science and health information for the practical and academic professional.

      JSTOR: a full text database of scholarly journals in the fields of Anthropology, Business and Economics, Ecology, Economics, Education, Geography, History, Literature, Language and Criticism, Math and Statistics, Philosophy and Religion, Political Science and Public Administration, Sociology, Social Sciences, and Science and Technology.

      Research Library: is a multidisciplinary database that contains articles from academic journals and magazines in the humanities, the social sciences, and the general sciences.

      Sociological Abstracts: indexes over 2,600 journals (as well as conference papers, books, and dissertations) in Sociology and related disciplines.

      Sociological Collection: contains more than 475 full-text titles covering all aspects of Sociology.

      For a more complete list of databases pertaining to Sociology, access GALILEO's Sociology page.



    Journal Locator
    Search for specific journals or magazines.  The Journal Locator will tell you the location and availability of a journal or magazine: either in the GCSU Periodicals Collection or in a database.


    Online Journals
      Electronic Journal of Sociology: "It is the mission of the EJS to bring sociological knowledge to the public in an easily accessible format. Therefore EJS presents research papers on topical or critical issues of today that are both scholarly and accessible."

      JASSS: The Journal of Artifical Societies and Social Simulation: "an inter-disciplinary journal of the exploration and understanding of social processes by means of computer simulation."

      JRS Journal of Religion & Society: "The Journal of Religion & Society is a cross-disciplinary, electronic journal published by the Rabbi Myer and Dorothy Kripke Center for the Study of Religion and Society at Creighton University."

      *All quotes are taken from the respective journal websites.


Websites


Contact A Librarian
For further assistance, contact the Reference Desk in the GCSU Library or contact the GCSU Library liaison to the Department of Government and Sociology:
    Liaison: Edward Whatley, Instruction and Reference Librarian

    Email: edward.whatley@gcsu.edu

    Phone: (478) 445-0981