Research Guides: ETST310: African-American Studies: Research Process

Research Process Overview

CSU Libraries Research Process Image - Alt Text

Developing Your Research Question

Developing your research question can be one of the most difficult parts of the research process. Remember that research is fluid; your topic will adapt, and could even completely change, as you do your research!

Find Definitions and Background Information:

Gale ebooks (Gale Virtual Reference Library) This link opens in a new window
Coverage: Varies
Provides access to encyclopedias, almanacs, and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research.
Oxford Reference
Coverage: Varies
Online reference product, spanning 25 different subject areas, bringing together 2 million digitized entries across Oxford University Press’s Dictionaries, Companions, and Encyclopedias.

The African American Almanac
2011. Ebook. Provides a range of historical and current information on African American history, society and culture.
An African American and Latinx History of the United States
2018. Ebook. "Spanning more than two hundred years, An African American and Latinx History of the United States is a revolutionary, politically charged narrative history, arguing that the 'Global South' was crucial to the development of America as we know it."

Searching Library Databases

Database searching is different from Google searching.

Break your topic into keywords (or key concepts)
- Combine main concepts with AND to get fewer results (homelessness AND college students)
- Combine synonyms or related terms with OR to get more results (college OR university)
Try different searches using different combinations of your keywords
As you skim your results, look for new keywords or ideas that relate to your topic
Keep trying! Searching often takes time and requires multiple searches in a few different databases
Ask for help

When searching in databases, you can use limits (normally on the left of your search results page) to focus on specific publication years, article types, etc.

Ask a Librarian

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