Your Scholarly Literature Search
Most Useful Places to Find Scholarly Literature
For Books:
For Articles:
For Books:
- Ebrary (book chapters available to download in PDF form)
- NYU Library (you know where this is, right?)
- New York Public Library (often good if a book is checked out from NYU)
- Library of Congress (good just to know what is out there)
For Articles:
- Google Scholar (many articles can be downloaded if you are logged in from campus)
- NYU Databases (see below for most useful ones)
Telescopes and Microscopes
As a researcher, I have long found it helpful to think of literature research in terms telescopes and microscopes. I use the phrase “telescoping” to refer to material one might find in an introductory class, and “microscoping” to refer to more current or specific research on a subject.
For instance, let’s say you are a student studying the independent music scene in Sweden. As a researcher, you’ll be expected to be familiar with some examples of two types of research: telescopic ‘big picture’ analysis on global media ownership issues by a writer like James Curran, and ‘smaller picture’ microscopic analyses that focus on Sweden in particular, such as the material published by Nancy Baym.
Now, if I were you right at this point, I’d be thinking, “How does she expect me to do that?” That answer is: by using your university’s resources.
Telescopic Research
When you are researching at the telescopic level, book chapters are the best place to begin, since they are designed to take on broader issues than journal articles. Reference texts and encyclopedias are the broadest ways to search. Here are some of NYU's best ones for our purposes:
When you come across books like this that seem to speak to your interest, keep in mind in most cases, you needn’t read the entire book to get what you need. In most books of this nature, there is an overview or introduction chapter that gives you the “lay of the land”—that’s what you are looking for at a telescopic level.
In addition to books like those above, you may want to consult encyclopedias or dictionaries for general knowledge on your topic. There, you’ll obviously be looking for a general entry to suit your interests. I also think it’s worth reading entries in Wikipedia at this point—mostly to see what sources are referenced there. Hopefully it goes without saying that you are not to be quoting Wikipedia in papers. It's also worth noting that a quick Google search for your general interest plus the word “syllabus” may turn up some very useful results. It has for me, in the past!
A final word on telescopic research: while it’s important and it helps you get a necessary overview of the general questions in your field, it’s important that you remember that your real work will be at the microscopic level, so DO NOT GO CRAZY with general stuff. Two or three resources generally work just fine.
Microscopic Research: Journal Articles
While book chapters are great for overview information, when it comes to microscopic research on your topic (i.e. material that is more specific, focused and/or up-to-date) academic journals will probably be your best bet. There are may useful references in our three different class bibliographies :
As a researcher, I have long found it helpful to think of literature research in terms telescopes and microscopes. I use the phrase “telescoping” to refer to material one might find in an introductory class, and “microscoping” to refer to more current or specific research on a subject.
For instance, let’s say you are a student studying the independent music scene in Sweden. As a researcher, you’ll be expected to be familiar with some examples of two types of research: telescopic ‘big picture’ analysis on global media ownership issues by a writer like James Curran, and ‘smaller picture’ microscopic analyses that focus on Sweden in particular, such as the material published by Nancy Baym.
Now, if I were you right at this point, I’d be thinking, “How does she expect me to do that?” That answer is: by using your university’s resources.
Telescopic Research
When you are researching at the telescopic level, book chapters are the best place to begin, since they are designed to take on broader issues than journal articles. Reference texts and encyclopedias are the broadest ways to search. Here are some of NYU's best ones for our purposes:
- The Credo Reference Library
(allows you to search by topic, image and mind map!) - Gale Reference Library
- Oxford Reference Library
- Paratext Reference Universe
(can take a bunch of clicks to get what you want, but *very* thorough and contains Credo, Gale, Oxford) - International Encyclopedia of Communication
- Sage Knowledge
- Issues • Handbook • Guide • Textbook
- Methods • Topics • Reader • Anthology
When you come across books like this that seem to speak to your interest, keep in mind in most cases, you needn’t read the entire book to get what you need. In most books of this nature, there is an overview or introduction chapter that gives you the “lay of the land”—that’s what you are looking for at a telescopic level.
In addition to books like those above, you may want to consult encyclopedias or dictionaries for general knowledge on your topic. There, you’ll obviously be looking for a general entry to suit your interests. I also think it’s worth reading entries in Wikipedia at this point—mostly to see what sources are referenced there. Hopefully it goes without saying that you are not to be quoting Wikipedia in papers. It's also worth noting that a quick Google search for your general interest plus the word “syllabus” may turn up some very useful results. It has for me, in the past!
A final word on telescopic research: while it’s important and it helps you get a necessary overview of the general questions in your field, it’s important that you remember that your real work will be at the microscopic level, so DO NOT GO CRAZY with general stuff. Two or three resources generally work just fine.
Microscopic Research: Journal Articles
While book chapters are great for overview information, when it comes to microscopic research on your topic (i.e. material that is more specific, focused and/or up-to-date) academic journals will probably be your best bet. There are may useful references in our three different class bibliographies :