Masters of Social Work: Library Research

I.    Finding Books

 Online Catalog - WebPALS   http://www.pals.msus.edu/

Note: Can also access University of Minnesota's catalog through WebPALS: Additional Library Catalogs

II.  Finding Journals

      Online/Electronic Indexes - If you have a computer off-campus, with Internet access, make sure and set up the Off Campus Access to Library Databases.

A.  Social Services Abstracts:  Provided in collaboration with NDSU, CSA Social Services Abstracts provide bibliographic coverage of current research focused on social work, human services, and related areas, including social welfare, social policy, and community development, and is updated monthly.  Major areas of subject coverage include:  Community development; Crisis intervention; Evaluation research; The family and social welfare; Gerontology; Policy, planning, forecasting; Poverty and homelessness; Professional issues in social work; Social development; Social work education; Support groups/networks; Violence, abuse, neglect; and Welfare services.  Published by Sociological Abstracts, a division of Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, and covering the dates of 1980 - current. 

B.   Sociological Abstracts:  Provided in collaboration with NDSU, CSA Sociological Abstracts is a primary resource for accessing the latest research sponsored in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences, and is updated monthly.  The database draws information from an international selection of over 2,600 journals and other serials publications, plus conference papers, books, and dissertations.  Records added after 1974 contain in-depth and nonevaluative abstracts of journal articles.  Major areas of subject coverage include:  Community development; Culture and social structure; Demography and human biology; Environmental interactions; Evaluation research; Family and social welfare; History and theory of sociology; Management and complex organizations; Mass phenomena and political interactions; Methodology and research technology; Policy, planning, forecast and speculation; Radical sociology; Rural and urban sociology; Economic development; Social development; Social differentiation; Social psychology and group interaction; Sociology of the arts, business, education; Health and medicine and law; Religion and science; Studies in violence and power; Welfare services; and Women's studies.  Published by Sociological Abstracts, a division of Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, and covering the dates of 1963 - current. 

C.  PsycINFO PlusText:  Contains citations and summaries of the journal article, book chapter, and book literature in psychology, as well as psychological aspects of related disciplines.   Journal coverage, spanning 1887-present, includes international material selected from more than 1,300 periodicals.  Current chapter and book coverage includes material published from 1987-present.  Approximately 50,000 references are added annually through quarterly updates.  

D.    ERIC   Available via WebPALS on the MSUM Library Homepage

E.   Professional Collection.     Part of the Gale/IAC databases suite, the Professional Collection is a custom selection of more than 300 full-text journals for educators that is updated daily and provides 24-hour access from school or home. It offers balanced coverage for any professional educator in the following areas: arts and humanities; child and adolescent psychology and development; drug and alcohol abuse; health/nutrition/fitness; learning disabilities; literature; school law; science and technology; social sciences; and sports/athletic training. (Added 7/8/04)

F.     EBSCO - Academic Search Premier
This resource contains full text for nearly 3,400 scholarly publications. This collection provides full text journal coverage for nearly all academic areas of study - including social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies. (Added 7/1/04)

EBSCO - MasterFILE Premier
Provides full text for 1,830 periodicals covering nearly all subjects including general reference, business, health, and a wide variety of general interest topics. (Added 7/1/04)

G.  CINAHL Database with Full Text.  Designed specifically for nursing programs in academic institutions as well as hospital libraries, CINAHL PlusText covers a wide range of topics, including nursing, allied health, alternative therapies, biomedicine, consumer health, and health administration. This database offers over 1,200 titles (with more than 260 in full text) and coverage from 1982 to the present. 

H.   FirstSearch Databases (OCLC)  FirstSearch contains over 80 databases ranging in coverage from Arts & Humanities, Business & Economics, Conferences & Proceedings, Consumer Affairs & People, Education, Engineering  & Technology, General & Reference, General Science, Life Sciences, Medicine & Health Sciences, News & Current Events, Public Affairs & Law, & Social Sciences.  For Sociology and Qualitative Research - connect to “Social Sciences,” & you will have access to:  Contemporary Women’s Issues; Social Sciences Abstracts; Periodicals Contents Index; and Wilson Select.  Try other categories also, such as Education and Medicine/Health Sciences.  

I.   Science Direct  Offers access to over 1,200 journals, many in full-text. Social Science-related journals in Science Direct include:

and many more

Any of the publications within Science Direct that are subscribed to by U of Minnesota are the ones available in full-text.

J.  JSTOR Full Text Journals  JSTOR is an electronic database of full-text back issues of 117 academic journals in the subject areas of African-American Studies, Anthropology, Asian Studies, Ecology, Economics, Mathematics, Philosophy, Political Science, Population/Demography, Education, Finance, History, Literature, Sociology, and Statistics.

 

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Wilson Web
Wilson OmniFile Full Text, Mega Edition is a multi-disciplinary database providing the complete content - indexing, abstracts, and full text - from six of Wilson's full-text databases: Standard CatalogsEducation Full Text, General Science Full Text, Humanities Full Text, Readers' Guide Full Text, Social Sciences Full Text, and Wilson Business Full Text.

            Wilson Web Biography Reference Bank contains biographical information on approximately half a million                 people, from antiquity to the present, along with thousands of images.

Wilson Web OmniFile Full Text, Wilson OmniFile Full Text, Mega Edition is a multi-disciplinary database providing the complete content - indexing, abstracts, and full text - from six of Wilson's full-text databases: Education Full Text, General Science Full Text, Humanities Full Text, Readers' Guide Full Text, Social Sciences Full Text, and Wilson Business Full Text.

 

III. Selected Internet Resources

Try the MSUM Library Social Work web sites page:

http://www.mnstate.edu/library/instruct/socwork.htm

 

Updated 09/04/2007
by Evon J. Dewald, Instruction Librarian dewald@mnstate.edu.

 

This handout is available on the web at:

http://www.mnstate.edu/library/instruct/msw.htm