Expanding your research
Practices and tools for POLS 92
Simon Elichko (they/them)
Social Sciences & Data Librarian
What we'll talk about today:
- Building on your existing bibliography using citation graphs
- How reference sources can help you better understand the scholarly debate on your topic
- Differentiating between literature reviewing and doing background reading
- Organizing your research
Intellectual interests
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Topics
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Research question
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Sources
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Argument
what you know already
multiple smaller questions
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what you need to learn more about
Sources
Scholarly Journals in Political Science
Browzine: browzine.com
(off-campus? search Tripod for Browzine)
• peer-reviewed • articles written by political scientists • cite other research •
Scholarly Books
Tripod library search: tripod.swarthmore.edu
• published by a university press or academic publisher (e.g. Routledge, Springer/Palgrave) • cite other research • written by political scientists •
Key question:
What do you need to know more about?
Background reading
- Background information and context (who, what, when, where, how much)
- Can inform your methodological choices
- Can help introduce your work and demonstrate its its significance
- Common sources for background info include news articles, statistics, and websites (books and articles are great too!)
Key question:
What do you need to know more about?
Literature review
- What existing scholarly research is the closest match to my topic and question?
- Is there a scholar whose name keeps coming up?
- What scholarship informed your initial questions? How you approached your topic?
- Who has done research that's similar to my project, but different in one or two significant aspects?
- Potential aspects include (among others) geographic area, methodology, identity and demographics, time period, theme(s) emphasized
Research mapping can help with background reading and your literature review
Citation Graphs
Google Scholar
scholar.google.com
Click "Cited by #" to view the list
Use Search Within to filter results
Citation Graphs
Inciteful
inciteful.xyz
Inciteful draws on a larger collection of academic sources (articles, books) than similar citation graph tools
Try it:
- Choose an academic article or book
- Go to inciteful.xyz
- Look up the source in Inciteful and see if you can find the citation graph for it.
Reference sources for understanding the scholarly debate
POLS 92 Research Guide >> Sources for Scholarly Debate
A few examples:
Oxford Bibliographies
Oxford Handbooks
Annual Reviews
How do you find articles on your topic that are scholarly?
Search for articles using a database that emphasizes scholarly journal articles (peer-reviewed) and lets you choose which journals to include in your search.
For example, ProQuest Social Sciences.
Find a link to this database:
Tripod >> Research Guides >> POLS 092 >> Find Research Articles
Finding relevant research papers in political science
Let's try searching the ProQuest Social Sciences database for articles related to your topic.
Keep it simple! Just choose 2-3 keywords for now.
- For example: disaster inequality
To expand your results, add a synonym or related word:
Reviewing the literature:
ProQuest Social Sciences
Put related words in one box and write OR in between each.
Reviewing the literature:
ProQuest Social Sciences Database
How do you get the PDF for
an article you find in
ProQuest?
In your search results, click
on the article you want.
Use the FindIt button to search Tripod.
In Tripod, follow the Download PDF
or View Online link.
Use the search filters to narrow down your results to more relevant articles. (Click on More > to view the full lists.)
- Publication title
- Location
- Subject
Reviewing the literature:
ProQuest Social Sciences Database
Staying organized
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Document your process
Consider keeping a simple log of what you work on each day. Some students find it helpful to keep a list of questions and keywords.
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Be consistent
Save your sources to the same folder so you can find everything even if you forget what's in an article. Descriptive filenames help.
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Annotate or categorize sources
Group similar sources together when you find them, so it's easier to write your literature review. (See: Tools)
Zotero lets you create a personal research library
Features: save sources easily, categorize into folders, attach notes, generate formatted citations
If you save sources to Zotero (double-check that the info is correct!), you can quickly create formatted citations for your paper.
Or try ZoteroBib (similar to EasyBib, but no ads)
Image credit
Chau, Joe. 2021. Guangzhou City, blue, yellow, and white concrete staircase. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/6vTw1T0l9gw
Research help
Reach out to talk about your research interests and your project. Discussing your work and asking questions is a great way to build skills.
Simon Elichko (social sciences librarian)
- Make an appointment: bit.ly/selichk1
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Email selichk1@swarthmore.edu
Research librarians + RIAs
- For quick questions, try chat in Tripod.
- Drop by help at the McCabe Research & Info Desk
- Email librarian@swarthmore.edu
Doing research in Political Science: POLS 92 Senior Comprehensive
By Swarthmore Reference
