Anthropology 113 - Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

INFORMATION LITERACY TUTORIAL

The Five Colleges of Ohio Information Literacy Tutorial can provide you with additional guidance in undertaking the research process.

SELECTING A TOPIC

Reference works, such as encyclopedias, handbooks, and dictionaries, are a good place to begin your research or search for ideas for a research topic. They provide an overview of a subject, and often contain bibliographies that will lead you to additional resources on your topic.

Some of the most useful reference works in the area of cultural anthropology are:

Encyclopedia of Cultural Anthropology [Ref. GN307 .E52 1996]
This four volume encyclopedia covers all of the sub-fields, important persons, topics, concepts, and organizations in the field of cultural anthropology. Each essay also includes a bibliography for further research.

Encyclopedia of World Cultures [Ref. GN307 .E53 1991]
This ten volume set provides comprehensive, authoritative descriptions of 1500+ cultural groups from around the world. Includes historical, political, linguistic, religious, social, economic and other information on each culture.

Encyclopedia of Social and Cultural Anthropology [Ref. GN307 .E648 1996]
This one volume encyclopedia contains 231 articles which cover a broad range of topics relevant to cultural anthropology. Does include entries for some subjects not covered by the Encyclopedia of Cultural Anthropology.

Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life [Ref. GN333 .W67 1998]
This four volume set provides information on 500 cultures of the world, covering twenty different areas of daily life including clothing, food, language, and religion.

The Encyclopedia of the Peoples of the World [Ref. GN495.4 .E53 1993]
This one volume encyclopedia provides brief information on various cultural groups around the world.

LOCATING BOOKS

The CONSORT catalog can be used to locate books, video and sound recordings, special collections materials, and some government documents available in the Kenyon, Denison, Ohio Wesleyan and Wooster libraries. CONSORT also provides access to OhioLINK, which indicates the holdings of 76 libraries throughout Ohio. You may borrow books directly from either CONSORT or OhioLINK. Requested materials typically arrive at Kenyon 2 to 3 working days after the request is made.

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

Journal articles, as well as some books, essays, etc., can be located using a variety of indexes. Keep in mind that not every journal or book title indexed will be held in the Kenyon Library. Check CONSORT to see if we own an item. Use the inter-library loan (ILL) office to request journal articles we do not own. (Estimated time for an item to arrive is at least 7-10 days).

Anthropology Plus (1983 - )
Anthropology Plus provides extensive worldwide indexing of journal articles, reports, commentaries, edited works, and obituaries in the fields of social, cultural, physical, biological, and linguistic anthropology, ethnology, archaeology, folklore, material culture, and interdisciplinary studies. Coverage is from the late 19th century to the present. This index brings together into one resource the highly respected Anthropological Literature from Harvard University and Anthropological Index, Royal Anthropological Institute from the UK.

Abstracts in Anthropology (1980 - ) [Reference Area -- Index Table 6]
Provides indexing and abstracting of anthropology periodicals. The subject and author indexes, which are cumulated annually, refer you to abstract numbers within the volume which summarize the articles.

The Anthropological Index Online (v.22, 1984 - )
Published by the Royal Anthropological Institute, this indexs covers the periodical collection of the British Museum Department of Ethnography (Museum of Mankind). Entries are compiled from over 750 journals received in the Department of Ethnography Library.

Academic Search Complete (1965- )
A comprehensive scholarly, multi-disciplinary full text database designed specifically for academic institutions. This resource contains more than 5,300 full-text periodicals, including 4,400 peer-reviewed journals. In addition, Academic Search Complete offers indexing and abstracts for more than 9,300 journals and a total of 10,900 publications including monographs, reports, conference proceedings, etc. The database features PDF content going back as far as 1865, with the majority of full text titles in native (searchable) PDF format.

Social Sciences Abstracts [1994- ] (link to using http://lbis.kenyon.edu/alldb) Indexes and abstracts articles from English-language periodicals published in the United States and elsewhere. Coverage includes a wide range of interdisciplinary fields covered in a broad array of social sciences journals.

LexisNexis Academic
Academic Universe is a web-based subset of the traditional Lexis-Nexis service, providing access to full text news, legal, business and reference sources. While you won't find scholarly journal articles in LexisNexis, you may find news or editorials which relate to anthropological issues, or which mention important researchers.

ELECTRONIC JOURNALS

JSTOR
Provides access to the full content of a variety of scholarly journals. Coverage generally begins with volume one of a journal, and ends 2-5 years from the present. Journals may be browsed or searched. Includes the anthropology journal listed below. In addition, there are a number of interdisciplinary journals.

USING INTERNET RESOURCES

When using Internet resources, it is very important to evaluate the reliability, objectivity, and currency of the information you find. For assistance in doing so, please see the guide to Evaluating Internet Resources.

To search for Internet resources on your topic, see the guide to Internet Search Tools.

Selected anthropology-related Internet sites:

Anthropology Resources on the Internet
Annotated guide to many of the largest and most up-to-date collections of anthropology resources on the Internet. Maintained by the American Anthropological Association.

Anthropology and Indigenous Studies
These World Wide Web Virtual Libraries serve as centralized access points for Internet resources in each of these areas.

Ethnographic Studies Resources
Collection of resources in the areas of anthropology, ethnomusicology, folklore, and folklife. The site is maintained by the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

Anthropology and Archaeology
This index from Yahoo is another useful guide to Internet resources on such topics as ethnomusicology, ethnobotany, linguistics, and many other areas relevant to anthropology and archaeology.

GETTING RESEARCH HELP

Research guides provide detailed information on how to conduct research, including how to find and use information resources available in the library. Two useful guides for anthropological research are:

Introduction to Library Research in Anthropology, 2nd ed. [Ref. GN42.W44 1998]

Fieldwork in the Library : A Guide to Research in Anthropology and Related Area Studies [Ref. GN42.W47 1994]

For individual reference assistance, contact:

Julia Glynn
Librarian and Technology Consultant
740.427.5834