This guide suggests resources and strategies for research in the field of social work. Suggested resources are meant to cover the field broadly, rather than one area of the field in-depth.

Background Information  |  Facts & Figures  |  Find Articles  |  Find Books  |  People  |  Organizations  |  Web Resources 

Background Information (Overview Sources)

Encyclopedias and other reference works are an excellent place to start a research project or simply learn more about a particular topic.  They provide topic summaries, context, and bibliographies for further reading.

Encyclopedia of Mental Health   R 616.89003 En186
Encyclopedia of Social Issues   R 306.0973 En19
Encyclopedia of Social Work   R 360 En19 1995
Handbook of Psychology   R 150 H19171

Use dictionaries, statistical works, atlases, handbooks and similar works to find and check facts about topics, people, or events.

Handbook of Social Work Research Methods   361.0072 H19174  (Kent stacks)
The Social Work Dictionary    R 361.303 B244s5
Statistical Abstract of the United States   R 317 Un3
     Available online at http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/
Statistical Resources on the Web
     http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/frames/statsfr.html
Statistical Universe
      http://library.semo.edu/find/db_az.asp#S

Search indexes, abstracts, and databases to find journal, magazine, and newspaper articles.  For a complete list of Kent Library's online indexes and databases & to access these online resources, see the Find: articles page (http://library.semo.edu/find/articles.asp).

Communication & Mass Media Complete
Full text journals & magazines related to social work
ERIC  (covers education broadly)
GPO   (indexes government publications)
HealthSource/ Nursing & Academic edition
LexisNexis Academic Universe  (an excellent legal research source)
MEDLINE
PsycINFO   (psychology and related fields)
Social Work Abstracts, 1994 to the present;  located in the Periodicals Index Area
Social Work Research & Abstracts, 1977-1993;  located in the Periodical Index Area
Wilson OmniFile   (multidisciplinary index)
 

Use the Kent Library Catalog (http://library.semo.edu/find/books.shtml) to find books, periodicals (journals, magazines, & newspapers), videos, government documents and other materials.

Keyword searches allow you to use your own words as search terms.
Subject heading searches use Library of Congress subject headings. Printed volumes of these headings are located near the Reference Desk on the main floor.

Browse the shelves by call number.  Use the Dewey Decimal chart (http://www.lib.duke.edu/libguide/fi_books_dd_list.htm) to get you in the right subject areas or try the following:

150   psychology
305   social groups
306   culture & institutions
310   statistics
340   law
360   social problems & social services
616   diseases
 

Learn about important people, such as authors, researchers & historical figures related to this topic or field.

Against the Tide: Women Reformers in American Society   R920.72 Ag14
Biographical Dictionary of Social Welfare in America   R923.673 B52
Encyclopedia of Women Social Reformers   R920.72 R1823e
 

Professional organizations and/or societies often provide very useful topic related information.

NASW (National Association of Social Workers)   http://www.socialworkers.org/nasw/default.asp
SWAN (Social Work Access Network)   http://cosw.sc.edu/swan/about.html
 

Bureau of Justice Statistics    http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
Bureau of Labor Statistics    http://www.bls.gov/
Center for Law and Social Policy   http://www.clasp.org/
Center for the Study of Social Policy    http://www.cssp.org/
ChildStats.gov    http://www.childstats.gov/
Council of State Governments   http://www.csg.org/csg/default
Kaiser Family Foundation statehealthfacts.org    http://www.statehealthfacts.kff.org/
National Center for Education Statistics (IES)    http://nces.ed.gov/edstats/
National Poverty Center   http://www.npc.umich.edu/
RPRC (Rural Poverty Research Center)   http://www.rprconline.org/
Show-Me Missouri: Living in Missouri   http://www.mo.gov/mo/living.htm
Social Work & Social Services Web Sites - from Washington University
  http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/library/websites.html
Thomas: Legislative Information on the Internet   http://thomas.loc.gov/
United Nations Statistics Division: Social Indicators 
  http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/socind/
U.S. Census Bureau   http://www.census.gov/
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services   http://www.hhs.gov/
 

For a list of Web searching tools, see the Find: web searching tools page (http://library.semo.edu/find/webpages.shtml).