Session 1
Session 2
Session 3

Questions of Identity

Library Session 1: Finding Historical Connections

How to Use

LIFE MAGAZINE

To search Life Magazine, simply go to the stacks where they are located (see above), find the month(s) and year(s) you are looking for and begin scanning issues for interesting material that may be useful for your paper.

NEW YORK TIMES

Searching the New York Times can be done more systematically via the online database that indexes articles back to 1851.

Once you get to the main page for the New York Times database, you have a number of searching options. You will automatically be brought to the “Basic” search page, but you can change that too “Advanced” by clicking on the tab above the search field.

Now you can enter numerous search terms or “keywords” to look for throughout the articles in the database.

For example:

Important Note: You can limit the years you search by entering dates in the given boxes near the bottom (date range)

Here is an example of what your search results might look like:

Other Resources

AncestryPlus: Onine Database

American Decades. (vols. 1-10, 1900 – 1999) E169.12 .A419 1994 (Reference)

The Guide to United States Popular Culture. E169.1 .D399 2001 (Reference)

The Columbia Chronicles of American life, 1910-1992. E169.1 .G667 1995 (Reference)

This Fabulous Century; Sixty Years of American Life. E161 .T55

The Annals of America. E173 .A793 1976

FOR ADDITIONAL OR MORE SPECIFIC RESOURCES, CONSULT A REFERENCE LIBRARIAN.

Library Instruction and Research Guide by:
Todd J. Wiebe
Instruction and Reference Librarian
Assistant Professor
Hope College – Van Wylen Library
X 7286
wiebe@hope.edu

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Questions of Identity

Library Session 2: Finding Books (YES, BOOKS!!)

1. HopeCAT – the online library catalog: http://lib.hope.edu
   (it’s the first link on the library website under “RESEARCH TOOLS”)

   KEYWORD SEARCHING

   Type whatever comes to mind when thinking of your topic

   Examples:
   Athletic Training
   Sleeping
   Pop Culture

   SUBJECT SEARCHING

   • Click on a book title you found by doing your keyword search – one that appears to be relevant to your topic.
   • Look at the links next to “SUBJECT” listed halfway down the page
   • Here you will (hopefully) see your subject listed in its standardized “library” form such as:
     
     Sports injuries – Diagnosis.
     OR
     Sleep – Physiological aspects.
     OR
     Popular culture -- United States -- History -- 20th century.

     Click on the one you want. This takes you to an entirely new list of SUBJECTS. The one you just clicked on is in BOLD

     Now, either click on this link again, or look above or below it for another related subject – This will take you to list of items in the library that all have that specific subject assigned to it.

   OTHER SEARCHES

   Of course, if you already know the title of a particular book, you can simply enter it in the search box select “title” using the drop-down menu next to it. You can do the same for an author if there is someone in particular you are looking for.

2. MeLCaT – the online catalog for all participating MICHIGAN libraries.

   When HopeCAT is not enough…

   You can search MeLCat two different ways.

   • Go directly to the catalog by clicking on the link from the main search page of HopeCAT
   • Search first in HopeCAT for a title/subject and if it is not found or you just want to see what other libraries have, click on the “Search MelCaT” button to the right of the screen.
   • Once you find a book that you want, click “GET THIS FOR ME” and follow the instructions.


3. Interlibrary Loan (ILL) – borrowing from other libraries

   *use when a book you want is not in HopeCAT or MeLCat

   Additional Tips:

   • Start with an encyclopedia on your topic – these are broad in scope and offer a good overview of subjects. The library contains encyclopedias that cover MANY subject disciplines. Ask a Reference Librarian if you need help finding the right one for your topic.
   • Take a look at the “works cited” or “bibliography” pages at the end of books or encyclopedia entries to get ideas for additional sources to look up.
   • Some topics are not as obvious in regards to what terms to search under. Always ask a Librarian at the Reference Desk before giving up and thinking that there is nothing out there on your subject.

Library Instruction and Research Guide by:
Todd J. Wiebe
Instruction and Reference Librarian
Assistant Professor
Hope College – Van Wylen Library
X 7286
wiebe@hope.edu

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Questions of Identity

Library Session 3: Finding Articles in Electronic Databases

INTRODUCTION
As a student at Hope College you have access to a wide range of electronic databases for research via Van Wylen Library. These databases cover many subject areas and can be used to find articles and article information (abstracts, bibliographic details, etc). In this library session you learn how to access these databases and effectively search for articles pertaining to your topic. You will also learn how to critically analyze the articles you find in order to determine their “usefulness” (or lack of) and relevance to your research.

1. USING THE DATABASES

   Click DATABASES FOR RESEARCH on the Van Wylen Library Homepage (www.hope.edu/lib)

   1. For starters, try searching the “General Research Databases” such as “InfoTrac OneFile”
      • Type in KEYWORDS that would be relevant to the memories or “questions of identity” you are writing about
      • To narrow your results, add more keywords to your search

        Example:
        Sport*
        AND
        Psycholog*
        AND
        Memor*

        NOTE: The asterisk (*) chops off the root of a word so that your search will find results for sport, sports, sporting, etc.

      (example screen of InfoTrac OneFile search screen)

      TIPS:

      • Once you find an article that interests you, click on the title and you will be brought to the extended display for this entry. Now, look around the page at the various “clickable” headings. These will lead you to other information that is important to this particular article
      • Be especially sure to check out the SUBJECT TERMS listed at the bottom of the page. By clicking these you can find other articles on the same topic.
      • If your results are too broad, try narrowing them down by going back to the main search screen and using one of these subject terms combined with other keywords.
   2. Try the SUBJECT databases for articles more specific to certain aspects of what you plan to write about. These are located below the heading “Databases by Academic Department” on the same page as the General Research Databases.

      For example:

      • A Psychology database such as “PsycINFO” could help you track down articles pertaining to a psychological aspect of your topic.
        OR
      • A Social Sciences database such as “Sociological Abstracts” might be useful in finding articles about a social trend or societal aspect relevant to your paper.

      IMPORTANT: Sometimes you will come across an article that appears to be want you are looking for, but you are only able to view the title and/or the abstract and some other information about it. This is because not all of the databases contain the complete full-text for all articles. In such a case, locate the WEBBRIDGE button on the screen and follow the links to other locations where the full-text article may be found. In some cases, the library simply does not have access to the article you want and you can use the INTERLIBRARY LOAN service to obtain it.

   3. For finding NEWSPAPER articles the library has a number of database options.
      • You can search “LexisNexis” database for articles from news sources all over the world. (select the “guided news search” tab)
      • “InfoTrac Custom Newspapers” draws results from over 200 U.S. and international newspapers
      • Search articles from Detroit News, Grand Rapids Press, and Lansing State Journal using the “Michigan’s Newspapers” database

      * All of these newspaper databases can be found from the library homepage by clicking “Online Reference Sources” below the RESEARCH TOOLS heading. Find the “News” heading then click “Newspapers.”
      http://www.hope.edu/lib/newspapers.html

2. ANALYZING YOUR SOURCES

   Not all articles are the same …and this does not mean that they differ simply in regards to their content or subject. Read the descriptions of article types listed below and you will see why it is important to be able to distinguish one from the other when using these types of sources in your research.

   Popular or General Interest

   Articles are written for a broad, general audience of readers. The intent is to persuade, sell, or entertain. Articles are authored by staff writers or freelance writers, and do not include bibliographies or footnotes.

   Examples: Rolling Stone, Ladies Home Journal, People.

   News or Newspapers

   Articles are written for a broad audience of readers, generally covering current events. Articles published in a news source are shorter than scholarly journal articles.

   Examples: The New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek.

   Trade

   Articles are written by and for professionals or specialists within a particular industry or field. Trade publications contain peer-to-peer advertisements, directed at those working in a particular industry.

   Examples: Broadcasting & Cable, Library Journal, and Popular Mechanics.

   Scholarly/Academic

   • Often start with an abstract, or summary, of the article.
   • Generally are longer than articles in popular or news magazines.
   • Are reviewed (refereed) by an editorial board and revised before being accepted for publication.
   • Report original research or experimentation results.
   • Are authored by subject experts, researchers, or scholars in their fields. Author credentials are frequently listed.
   • Are published by professional organizations, such as the American Medical Association (Journal of the American Medical Association), or the National Council on Family Relations (Journal of Marriage and the Family).

   MORE ON APPRAISING INFORMATION SOURCES

Library Instruction and Research Guide by:
Todd J. Wiebe
Instruction and Reference Librarian
Assistant Professor
Hope College – Van Wylen Library
X 7286
wiebe@hope.edu

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