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Library Session Goals | Scholarly Research | Reference Resources | Articles | Statistics | Books & Journals | Citing Sources | Research Assistance
Social Work 300: This introductory course explores multiple dimensions of diversity in a pluralistic and increasingly globalized society. Using a social work strengths perspective as well as historical, constructivist, and critical conceptual frameworks; the course examines issues of identity, culture, privilege stigma, prejudice, and discrimination. The social construction and implications of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and other dimensions of difference is examined at individual, interpersonal, and systems levels. Students are expected to use the course material to explore their personal values, biases, family backgrounds, culture, and formative experiences in order to deepen their self-awareness and develop interpersonal skills in bridging differences. Finally, students apply learning from the course to identify characteristics of effective social work and other health and human service provision among people culturally different themselves; and to identify opportunities for change contributing to prejudice reduction and cross-cultural acceptance at home, work and in society.
1. Identify sources of social work research and evidence.
2. Understand how to structure an article database search.
3. Practice search in Social Services Abstracts, including search tips (truncation and thesaurus) and Discover Full-Text.
4. Learn about citation management tools (Refworks).
Refereed materials are publications reviewed by "expert readers" or referees prior to the publication of the material. After reading and evaluating the material, the referee informs the publisher if the document should be published or if any changes should be made prior to publication. Refereed materials are also referred to as Peer Reviewed. Refereed materials are significant to the research and the literature of most academic fields because they assure readers that the information conveyed is reliable and timely.
Many article databases now allow you to limit your search to display only peer-reviewed (refereed) results. Use this option to eliminate guesswork and rest assured that your results are all from peer-reviewed sources.
Note: beware the "scholarly" label...as we've seen, a source can be "scholarly" but not necessarily peer-reviewed. Look for "peer-reviewed" or "refereed" to be sure.
Reference resources are sources of solid background info about ethnic groups. All books are located in Social Sciences, Health, and Education Library reference collection.
309.12 So15 and Online
Encyclopedia of Social Work
Comprehensive overview of social work from a United States perspective. Contains a topical outline of entries, directory of contributors, and comprehensive index.
361.32 So1344 2009
Social Worker’s Desk Reference
Resource for those engaged in the social work profession or for students looking to familiarize themselves with the techniques and strategies of intervention in the clinical setting.
808.066301 Sz71w 2011
Writing with Style: APA Style for Social Work
Information about how to write different sections of a paper, including writing a literature review.
361.3072 Sa184 and Online
The SAGE Handbook of Social Work Research
Divided into sections on the purposes, contexts, practices, and domains of social work research.
NOTE: See also the list of reference sources on the Educational Policy Studies 421 Class Guide.
www.library.illinois.edu/eref/
Start by keyword searching larger collections of encyclopedias, dictionaries and handbooks. It's also possible to browse an specific online reference source by subject.
Scholarly journal articles are one of the primary means of communicating research ideas. They are an important component of academic research and give you some insight into ongoing debates and scholarly conversations about your topic. You can find articles through database searches.
Finding articles is a two-step process:
OR
The Black Population: 2010 (US Census Bureau) Provides information about demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics.
NOTE: For additional information about statistics, see the Sources for Statistics in the Social Sciences, Health, and Education guide.
Library catalogs are used for two purposes. First, if you know exactly what you are looking for, for example you know the exact title or an author's name. This works for book titles and journal titles. Second, you can use library catalogs to discover material that might be helpful to you by doing subject and keyword searching.
Search the Library Catalog to find books, DVDs, magazines or journals containing articles that you need, and many other resources. In addition to the 13 million volumes we have on this campus, you can connect to over 70 other libraries in Illinois and request that books be sent to you. When you find something you want in the catalog, write down the following:
If you click the "Advanced Search" link beneath the search box, you can access the advanced search option. This will give you 3 search boxes and some limiting options, allowing you to control your search more:
Guidelines for citing electronic and print resources are available from the Reference Library's Cite a Source page and the Social Sciences, Health, and Education Library's Style and Writing Guide.
A great tool for writing papers, RefWorks helps you export bibliographic records from databases, change the citation styles as needed, and import the citation directly into a Word document so you can create bibliographies on the fly.
Use the Social Sciences, Health, and Education Library's Ask-A-Librarian service to contact a librarian via Instant Messenger/chat, email, phone, or in person.
Contact a librarian to request an appointment for an in-depth Research Consultation.
There are over 25 departmental libraries on our campus, and sometimes it may be difficult to determine where to find the resources you need. For your class, the library that you will be using most is the Social Sciences, Health, and Education Library (SSHEL). We are located in SSHEL North (Room 100) and SSHEL South (Room 101) of the Main Library building. Do no hesitate to come in and ask one of our energetic and helpful information desk assistants.
University LibraryFor comments on this page contact: Social Sciences, Health, and Education Library
Last modified by: Paige Cunningham on 4/22/13