What do we already know?
Reviewing the existing literature to inform your research
SOCI 16 | Professor Ya Su
Simon Elichko (they/them)
Social Sciences & Data Librarian
What we'll talk about today:
- Difference between literature reviewing and doing background reading
- Major journals in sociology
- Tools and approaches for navigating the research literature
- Organizing your research to facilitate your learning
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
Sense-making strategy:
Map your research ideas
Key question for planning your literature review:
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!)
Literature review
- What existing scholarly research is the closest match to my topic and question?
- Is there a scholar whose name keeps coming up?
- 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
Top journals:
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
How do you read articles from a journal?
Search for the journal title on Tripod. Follow links to get access through Swarthmore's subscription.
Tripod: tripod.swarthmore.edu
Reviewing the literature:
Navigating sociology research
Browzine (link on guide)
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
How do you find articles on your topic that are scholarly?
How do you limit your results to particular journals?
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, Sociological Abstracts >> Link on SOC 16 research guide
Reviewing the literature:
Navigating sociology research
Let's try searching the Sociological Abstracts 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:
Sociological Abstracts database
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
Tip: Put related words in one box and write OR in between them.
Reviewing the literature:
Sociological Abstracts database
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
How do you get the PDF for
an article you find in
Sociological Abstracts?
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:
Sociological Abstracts database
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
What's another way to limit your search
results to certain journals?
Go to Modify Search
Choose + Add a row
Change the drop-down menu
from Anywhere -> Publication title
Use Look up Publications to find
and add each journal. (Search for the
journal, check the box, then Add to search.)
Reviewing the literature:
Sociological Abstracts database
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
Still want more?
- Make your results more precise by putting any
two-word phrases inside quotation marks- Hurricane Katrina --> "Hurricane Katrina"
This will only give you articles that include the exact phrase. Otherwise you'll get articles about hurricanes written by someone named Katrina.
- Hurricane Katrina --> "Hurricane Katrina"
- See this link on the research guide: Improve Your Searches
Reviewing the literature:
Navigating sociology research
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
Other ways to find research:
- Use review articles + scholarly bibliographies
- Follow citation networks
- Use book reviews to evaluate books
Reviewing the literature:
Navigating sociology research
- American Sociological Review
- American Journal of Sociology
- Social Forces
- Social Problems
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 Organizing Sources)
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