Techniques for Situating Sources in the Context of Other Scholarship
- Find scholarly background articles on the topic (encyclopedias, handbooks, etc.) Check the resources classified as "Background" on the databases list
- See if there is an Oxford Bibliography or Annual Review (most likely to be successful if your topic has a social science methods connection) on your topic
- Review historiography or literature review sections of journal articles and books
- Consult book reviews
- Find sources located in the endnotes and bibliography from works you've already identified
- Use cited reference searching in Google Scholar or Web of Science to find works that have cited works you've already identified
- Use a broad search tool like Summon or Google Scholar to look for your topic and keywords like "historiography" or "literature review" or "bibliography."
- Find a dissertation on the topic.
Encyclopedias
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Oxford Research Encyclopedias This link opens in a new window
Designed to be an authoritative resource of reference content in a wide array of academic fields, including the humanities, social sciences, and science.
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Oxford Reference This link opens in a new windowHundreds of dictionaries, general reference, language reference, and subject reference works from Oxford University Press.
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Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism (5 Vols)
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ISBN: 9789004180475Publication Date: 2009-09-25A thematic encyclopedia, presenting the latest research on all the main aspects of the Hindu traditions in original essays written by the world's foremost scholars on Hinduism. The Encyclopedia explicitly adopts an interdisciplinary and pluralistic approach, and in it, the term Hinduism is used critically in the knowledge that most of the traditions that today make up Hinduism are much older than the term itself. -
Encyclopedia of Buddhism
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ISBN: 9780028659107Publication Date: 2004-04-01This encyclopedia is a historically focused work that provides an introduction to the doctrinal, ethical, social and spiritual ideas that inform the various traditions of Buddhism and the changes they have undergone over more that 2500 years. -
The Encyclopedia of Christianity
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Call Number: Main Reference BR95 .E8913 1999 vol. 1ISBN: 0802824137Publication Date: 1998-11-01The Encyclopedia of Christianity is the first of a five-volume English translation of the third revised edition of Evangelisches Kirchenlexikon. Its German articles have been tailored to suit an English readership, and articles of special interest to English readers have been added. The encyclopedi -
Encyclopedia of Islam
Publication Date: 2002-presentLeading reference work which covers all aspects of the Islamic world including religion, history, politics, and culture. Scope includes all time periods and geographic issues. -
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Encyclopedia of Religion in America
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Call Number: Available as an eBook in OBISISBN: 9780872895805Publication Date: 2010-06-01
Bibliography and Review Sources
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Oxford Bibliographies This link opens in a new window
Authoritative guide to reliable peer-reviewed resources and scholarship in African Studies, Buddhism, Latin American Studies, Linguistics, Medieval Studies, Political Science, and Renaissance and Reformation. Bibliographies are selectively curated and annotated by expert academics and offer high-level overviews that provide non-experts with a point of entry into unfamiliar areas of study.
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Cambridge Histories This link opens in a new windowHistorical overviews and contextual essays from leading scholars on topics across a broad range of time periods and geographies. Chapters can be downloaded as PDFs and are printable.
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Annual Reviews This link opens in a new windowCritically reviews the most significant research literature in over 40 focused disciplines within the fields of biomedical, life, physical, and social sciences. These reviews both summarize recent scholarly advances and prompt new research activity. Excellent database of in-depth, secondary sources.
Book reviews in Summon
Use the "book review" limiter to see only book review results, and the Journal Finder to find full text of the review if the linking from Summon fails.
Dissertations
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ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I This link opens in a new window
Citations and abstracts for dissertations and theses on all subjects from around the world. Previews and full text available for some titles.
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Open Access Theses & Dissertations This link opens in a new windowFreely available masters theses and doctoral dissertations from around the world.
