The library has many reference
resources (dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, etc.) that will
help you find background information on topics in Political
Science and related fields. Selected resources are listed
below. Look on the shelves near these books; there may be
similar books nearby with helpful information.
- West's Encyclopedia of American Law - Middle Level, Reference
Table 2A: KF 154 .W47 1997
(The 2005 edition of this excellent encyclopedia is available
online)
- Encyclopedia of Political Thought - Middle Level, Reference
Shelves: JA 61 .E52 2001
- The Oxford Companion to Politics of the World - Middle
Level, Reference Shelves: JA 61 .O95 2001
- The Encyclopedia of Human Rights - Midlle Level, Reference
Shelves: JC 571 .L523 2001
- The Greenwood Encyclopedia of International Relations -
Middle Level, Reference Shelves: JZ 1160 .N65 2002
- Black's Law Dictionary - Middle Level, Ask at Reference
Desk
- Congress A-Z - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:
JK 1021 .C554 2003
- Elections A-Z - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:
JK 1976 .M57 2003
- The Presidency A-Z - Middle Level, Reference
Shelves: JK 511 .P775 2003
- The Supreme Court A-Z - Middle Level, Reference
East Wall: KF 8742 .A3558 2003
- The U.S. Constitution A-Z - Middle Level, Reference
East Wall: KF 4548 .M33 2003
- Encyclopedia of the American Constitution - Middle Level,
Reference Table 2A: KF 4548 .E53 2000
- Great American Court Cases - Middle Level, Reference
Table 2A: KF 385 .A4G68 1999
- American Landmark Legislation - Middle Level, Reference
East Wall: KF 68 .S5
- The Oxford Guide to the United States Government - Middle
Level, Reference Shelves: JK 9 .P384 2001
- American Political Leaders 1789-2000 - Middle Level,
Reference Shelves: E 176 .A513 2000
- The American Bench - Middle Level, Reference East Wall:
KF 8700 .A19A17
By Citation:
Decisions in U.S. Supreme
Court cases are published by the federal government in a series
entitled United States Reports. This series is
found in our Government Documents (Middle Level, north end) reference
collection at JU 6.8: J34. Cases are cited using
the following format: 534 U.S. 112. The
first number (534) indicates the volume number,
the letters (U.S.) indicate that the citation is to the United
States Reports, and the last number (112) is the page
in volume 534 where the case starts. U.S. Supreme Court cases may
also be found using citations at FindLaw.Com
or Lexis-Nexis Academic
(click on Legal at the top of the Lexis-Nexis home page then select
the type of legal search you want on the right side of the page)
By Name:
U.S. Supreme Court cases
are often refered to by name (eg. Roe v. Wade). Unfortunately,
the formats used for case names are not consistent. Both FindLaw.Com
and Lexis-Nexis
Academic allow you to search by case name, although this is
more difficult than searching by citation. Fortunately, most
legal publications will provide both the case name and citation
when refering to a case
Briefs and Arguments:
Briefs and arguments
for important Supreme Court decisions may be found in Landmark
Briefs and Arguments of the Supreme Court of the United States:
Constitutional Law (current ten years are shelved on the
Middle Level, Reference East Wall at KF 101.8 .L36; earlier editions
are shelved on the Top Level at the same call number). Cases are
organized by year of decision and case name. Audio recordings of
oral arguments for selected cases are available at Oyez,
a free Supreme Court multimedia database.
By Public Law Number:
When a law is passed
by Congress, it is assigned a Public Law Number
and published in a series known as United States Statutes
at Large. This series is found in our Government Documents
(Main Level, north end) reference collection at AE 2.111.
Public law numbers are normally indicated using the following format:
P.L. 107-115. The letters (P.L.) are an abbreviation
for Public Law, the first number (107th) indicates
the Congress that passed the law, and the second
number (115) indicates the number assigned to that
law by the Congress that passed it. When looking for this law, you
will need to locate the volume(s) of the United States Statutes
at Large for the 107th Congress and find law number 107-115. You
may also search by public law number on FindLaw.Com
or Lexis-Nexis Congressional.
By United States Statutes
at Large Citation:
Some legal and legislative
resources will cite laws passed by Congress using United
States Statutes at Large citations in the following format: 115
Stat. 2118. The first number (115) refers to volume
number (not number of the Congress), the letters (Stat.)
indicate that the citation is to United States States at
Large, and the last number (2118) refers to the page
in volume 115 where the text of the law begins.
By Name:
Many acts of Congress
are also given a name, such as the USA PATRIOT ACT
or the Victims of Terrorism Tax Relief Act of 2001.
If the name includes a year, you can usually find it by looking
for the volume(s) of the United States Statutes at Large
for the year in question. Otherwise, the best way to find them is
to search by name or subject using FindLaw.Com
or Lexis-Nexis Congressional.
By United States Code
Citation:
A year or two following
passage of a law, the government adds it to a compilation known
as the United States Code, the print version of
which is found in our Government Documents (Middle Level, north
end) reference collection at Y 1.2/5. The
United States Code is organized by subject areas
instead of law name or number. In many cases, portions of a specific
act will be put into different sections (known as Titles) of the
code because they cover different areas of the law or effect different
federal agencies. Citations to the United States Code use
the following format: 19 U.S.C. § 52. The
first number (19) indicates the Title (section) of the code, the
letters (U.S.C.) indicate that the citation is to the United
States Code, and the last number (§ 52) indicates
the specific section of the Title where the law
if found. You may also access the U.S. Code on a number of web sites,
including FindLaw.Com, Lexis-Nexis
Congressional, and the Cornell
University U.S. Code site.
Congressional Debate,
Voting Records and Legislative Histories:
Several resources are
available to investigate the context in which a specific bill became
law:
- Congressional Record - Government Documents
X 1.1/A. For assistance ask at Reference Desk. Available from
1985 to present in LexisNexis
Congressional
This is the official record of debate in the Senate and
House of Representatives. It is organized by date.
To find a record of debate on a specific law, consult the Congressional
Record for the day on which the law was passed, as well
as previous dates when the law was debated. Use the index
to help identify dates when congress debated the bill.
- Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report - Middle
Level, Reference Shelves: JK 1 .C7491
This weekly publication provides detailed information on federal
legislative activity for each week Congress is in session.
- Congressional Quarterly Almanac - Middle Level,
Reference Shelves: JK 1 .C749
This annual print publication summarizes federal legislative activity
on a yearly basis. Consult the index of the volume for the
year in which a law was passed to find a description of the legislation
and the context in which it passed, including the results of roll
call votes, etc.
- Lexis-Nexis Congressional
Provides access to all kinds of information regarding congress,
including references to testimony presented before congressional
committees and complete legislative histories for a number of
important acts of congress. You can search the database
in a number of ways, including name, subject, and public law number.
Online Catalogs:
Use library online catalogs
to find availability and location of books and other media:
Browse the Shelves:
Most of the books on Political
Science are located on the Top Level of the library
in the General Collection under the call numbers J through
JZ. Books of interest may also be found under KF
[Law], E [American History], HN [Social History],
HV [Criminal Justice], HX [Socialism], and B
[Philosophy]
Bibliographies:
When you find a good book
or article, check the bibliography to identify other books and articles
on your subject.
Interlibrary Loan:
If we do not own a particular
book you need, we will borrow it for you from another library through
Interlibrary Loan.
Online Article Databases:
Use Social
and Behavior Sciences article databases to find magazine and
journal articles by subject or keyword. An excellent place
to start is Academic
Search Premier, which contains the full-text of articles from
many peer-reviewed journals; be sure to put a check in the box next
to "Peer Reviewed or Refereed" in order to limit your
search to such journals. If you find a citation
and the article is not available in full-text on
the computer, check our electronic
journals list to see if we subscribe to the journal in
electronic form. If not, check our Online
Catalog to see if we have the journal in print. If we do not
have access to it in print or electronic form, you can always request
the article via Interlibrary
Loan.
Newspaper Databases:
Use News
article databases to find newspaper articles by subject or keyword.
Electronic Journals:
The library also provides
access to many full-text electronic
journals in Political Science and related fields. All of these
allow you to browse the table of contents of journal issues and
many allow you to search all available issues by keyword. You
can search our collection of electronic journals by subject or by
words in the title. Try searching for politics, political, foreign
affairs, international relations, etc.
Browse Current Periodicals:
Current issues of magazines
and journals in Political Science and related fields are found in
the J section of the Current Periodicals Area on the Middle Level
of the library. Bound volumes of older issues are shelved in the
General Collection on the Top Level.
Bibliographies:
When you find a good
book or article, check the bibliography to identify other books
and articles on your subject.
Interlibrary Loan:
If the article you need
is not available in our library, we will obtain a copy of it for
you from another library through Interlibrary
Loan.
A good place
to begin is the Stewart Library's list of web
resources in Political Science. Most of the sites listed
will provide links to additional sites, so explore! Use Internet
search engines to find additional information.
As you do your research,
keep the following tips in mind:
