Class Guide for
Women in East Asia GWS/EALC 361
Spring 2008

Back to Women and Gender Studies

Welcome! This site has been created to assist you in finding and using library resources for your research on women in East Asia.  Our library, one of the largest university libraries in the U.S., can be a bit overwhelming at first, but it is truly a treasure trove for scholars. All of the UIUC Library's resources are available to you as you do your research, so explore, have fun, and don't hesitate to ask questions!

ASK-A-LIBRARIAN FOR HELP WITH YOUR RESEARCH

FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND

We have over 35 departmental libraries on our campus.  The libraries you will likely find to be the most useful for this class are the Education and Social Science Library, the History Library, the Main Stacks, and the Undergraduate Library.  The first three are located in the Main Library building.  You might also hear it referred to as the "Graduate Library," but don't let that misnomer stop you from coming in here and taking advantage of the resources we can provide. It's your library, too!

LIBRARY HOURS

Hours and contact information for all UIUC Libraries.

FINDING ARTICLES

Journal articles are one of the primary means of communicating research and ideas in academia. They can be an important component of your research paper and give you some insight into ongoing debates and conversations about your topic. 

Finding articles is a two-step process:

• First, find the citation to the articles you want. You can use reading lists from class, consult a bibliography or the works cited in a relevant book or article, or you can search for the topic you are interested in by using one of the article databases listed below. If you get stuck, ask your professor or Ask-A-Librarian for help getting started.
• Next, find the actual text of the articles you want. Many journals are online, but many still live on the shelves. If the article is not available electronically, you will need to use the Online Library Catalog to look up the source of the citation you have retrieved from the article database.

WHICH DATABASES WILL WORK BEST FOR THIS CLASS?

• Bibliography of Asian Studies (1971 to date)
  Identifies Western language publications on all subjects (especially humanities and social sciences) pertaining to East, Southeast, and South Asia. Specific types of materials indexed include: books, journal articles, individually-authored monographs, chapters in edited volumes, conference proceedings, and anthologies.
• Contemporary Women’s Issues (full text; 1992 to date)
  Emphasizes health and human rights globally. A good source for research reports and fact sheets from non-profit groups; governments; NGOs; and international agencies.
• GenderWatch (1974 to date)
  This full text database indexes journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, pamphlets, and reports. Covers business, education, literature and the arts, health sciences, history, public policy, and contemporary culture.  Has more of a U.S. focus than worldwide.
• Women's Studies International (1972 to date)
  Provides citations to journals, books, book chapters, proceedings, NGO reports, and gray literature. Over 2,000 periodical sources are represented.
• Historical Abstracts (1954 to date)
  Identifies international articles and books on history since 1450, excluding the U.S. and Canada. Includes topics from the Renaissance to Tiananmen Square. A targeted selection of hundreds of journals in the social sciences and humanities is also provided
• JStor
  Includes the full text of over 100 journals in the areas of African American studies, anthropology, area studies, botany, general science, music, business, ecology, economics, education, history, literature, mathematics, philosophy, political science, sociology, and statistics. Most include full text of complete journals from their inception up to a "moving wall", which is a fixed period of time usually from 2 to 5 years.
• Worldwide Political Science Abstracts (1975 to date)
  Identifies articles on political science, international relations, law, public administration/policy and political economy.

FINDING BOOKS

• Online Library Catalog - Look here to find books, magazines or journals containing articles that you need, DVDs, and many other resources.  In addition to the 10 million volumes we have on this campus, you can connect to over 70 other libraries in Illinois and request books be sent to you.
  
  When you find something you want in the catalog, write down the following:

  Location - in which library the item is kept (or libraries, if we have multiple copies)
  Call Number - this number is essential for finding the item on the shelf
  Status - is it available for you to check out?

  Hint: Catalogs are used for two purposes: (1) If you know exactly what you are looking for - an exact title or author - you can use the catalog to locate your material (this works for book titles and journal titles); (2) You can also use catalogs to discover material that might be helpful to you by doing subject and keyword searching.
• WorldCat and Interlibrary Loan - The places to verify citations for books and request books and articles you cannot find elsewhere.

WHERE ELSE CAN YOU GO FOR INFORMATION? SELECTED WEBSITES

• Women & Gender Studies Information Resources -- The UIUC Library gateway to information resources for women and gender studies.
• East and Southeast Asia: Women's Issues & Organizations
• China: Women's Issues & Communities -- A directory to internet resources about women's issues in China.
• Japan: Women & Family Issues -- A directory to internet resources about women's issues in Japan.
• Women in Japan -- Selected web sites from the Asian Studies Librarian at SUNY Albany.

CENSUS DATA AND STATISTICS:

• FedStats
• Statistical Abstract

CITING SOURCES IN YOUR BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Style and Writing Guides - How to format citations, write papers, and do research in the the social sciences.
• Refworks - 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. For help using this utility, see Refworks Help.

MORE TIPS ON USING THE LIBRARY

• Basic Library Usage - A great source on how to use the UIUC Libraries.
• Research Process - A step-by-step guide to research that takes you through the entire process, from choosing your topic to citing sources.
• Guide to Sources in Women's Studies - A guide to women's studies-related sources in the Education and Social Science Library and the Main Library.

January 30, 2008