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Best Bets for Starting Your Research in...

:: Russian & East European Studies ::

Finding
Articles

Finding
Books

Reference Tools
(Dictionaries, etc.)

Web
Sites

How Do I?


Finding Articles

Use databases to find articles on your topic. These databases are the best place to start.

  • Academic OneFile
    Academic OneFile is a premier source for peer-reviewed, full-text articles from leading journals and reference sources. With extensive coverage of the physical sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences, the arts, theology, literature and other subjects, Academic OneFile is both authoritative and comprehensive. With millions of articles available in both PDF and HTML full-text with no restrictions, researchers are able to find accurate information quickly. Includes full-text coverage of the New York Times back to 1995.
    Date Coverage: 1980-Present.
  • Social Sciences Full Text
    Full-text articles on the literature of political science, sociology, anthropology, economics, geography, law and criminology, and social work.
    Date Coverage: 1983 to present.

  • JSTOR
    Contains archive images of searchable scholarly journals in various disciplines. Subscription includes: Russian Review, European Sociological Review, Slavic and East European Journal and etc.
    Date coverage: 1915-Present.
    speaker Listen to a fun podcast "interview" with this database: iTunes RealPlayer

  • Historical Abstracts
    Citations and abstracts to the history of the world from 1450 to the present, excluding U.S. and Canada.
    Date Coverage: 1954-Present

  • NewspaperDirect PressDisplay
    Offers full-color page images of newspapers from all around the world in English and foreign languages. It is current, providing today's papers, and it provides the entire paper, including ads. Also offers the ability to listen to and translate selected articles, subscribe to an RSS feed, and blog about what you read. Selection of different countries and languages is available under "Select Title..."
    Coverage: Previous 60 Days-Present

Tips: When searching databases, use AND, OR, and parentheses to focus your search.

The asterisk * symbol will search for all variations of a word. For example: basket* will search for baskets and basketry. Using quotes will search for a phrase.

Combine synonyms with OR and put them inside parentheses, like this:

"russia* AND (history OR communicsm)

Here's another example:

Soviet union* AND (eastern europe)
 

Already have the citation? Find an article with citation linker!

Did you know...

Databases are basically just search engines for articles on specific subjects.

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Finding Books

Find books using the library catalog. Browse these subjects to get general information on your topic.

  1. Russian History
  2. Eastern Europe
  3. Soviet Union
  4. Russian Literature

Search the library catalog! Find books, media materials, and more.

Other searches:
Browse | Advanced Search

Tips: When searching the library catalog with keywords, use the dollar sign ($) to search for a word and all of its variations.

For example: Russi$ will search for Russia and Russian

Did you know...

  • WorldCat is a catalog of thousands of libraries around the world!
  • If a book isn't in the Fairfield University catalog, search WorldCat and request the book from another library. Just click on the Interlibrary Loan button.
  • You can search ReQuest to search just the libraries in Connecticut.
  • Contact John Cayer, Interlibrary Services, with questions.

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Reference Tools: Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, and more

Reference tools such as dictionaries and encyclopedias are good places to start your research because they provide an overview of the topic as well as keywords, dates, and facts.

Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, and Handbooks

  • The Blackwell Encyclopedia of the Russian Revolution
    Ref. DK265.B54 1988
  • Cambridge Encyclopedia of Russia and the Former Soviet Union
    Ref. DK14.c35 1994
  • Encyclopedia of Eastern Europe: From the Congress of Vienna to the Fall of Communism
    Ref. DJK6.E53 2000

  • Encyclopedia of Russian History
    Ref. DK14.E53 2004 Volumes 1-4

  • Historical Dictionary of Russia
    Ref. DK36.R39 1998

  • A Political and Economic Dictionary of Eastern Europe
    Ref. HC244.P66 2002

  • Modern Slavic Literatures
    Ref. PG501.M518 Volumes 1-2

Tips: Try looking at the bibliography at the end of the entry for a list of other sources such as relevant journal articles and books.

When you have found books on your topic, look at the books on the shelf nearby to see if they are related to your topic.

Did you know...

Wikipedia can be edited by anyone, so make sure you use another source to confirm the information you find there.

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Web Sites

These web sites have been evaluated by librarians (that's a good thing) for your use in an academic setting.

Did you know...

There are billions of web pages and Google only finds a fraction of them (about 15%). The rest is held in what's called the "Invisible Web", which is made up of dynamically generated information, password protected sites, and databases-driven sites!

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How Do I?


Use these short e-learning modules to get quick answers!

Still have questions?

Contact a Reference Librarian
(203) 254-4000 ext. 2178
reference@mail.fairfield.edu

IM the Reference Desk at FairfieldULib - AOL and Yahoo
FairfieldUlib@hotmail.com - MSN

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