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REA 110
Research Strategies
Global Issues Topics
PART 1. Begin your country research with the e-book,
The CIA World Fact Book
To access this e-book: login to the MyMC3 student portal. Click the red Library button on the upper
right. This takes you to the library website. Click Find Articles & More. Then select Encyclopedias &
Reference next to “By Format”. Click to select Credo Reference, as shown below:
Try a general search relevant to your topic first such as ‘poverty’ or sex-trafficking’. Next, find
information on your country. Click “Find a book” in the blue bar towards the top of the screen. Type in
the title – CIA World Fact Book and then click the link. This book will allow you to search by country.
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Click to select your country.
Explore information about your chosen country including geography, people, government,
economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.
ALSO -- Click the drop-down menu at the top of the table (shown below) to select a country to
compare with your chosen country (you might select United States).
Part 2. Explore print Reference Sources – These encyclopedias and
handbooks are located in the Reference section of the Brendlinger Library on
the main floor.
The following is a great source for country information with includes sections on education, health, and
the country’s economy. – Very similar to the content in the CIA World Fact Book, but more detailed.
The Statesman’s Yearbook
REF JA 51 .S7 2011
The following are great sources for country information with an emphasis on historical, cultural, and
sociological information:
Culture Grams
Countries and Their Cultures
Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life
Encyclopedia of World Cultures
REF GT 150 C85 2004
REF GN 307 C68 2001
REF GN 333 W67 1998
REF GN 307 E53 1991
This last encyclopedia provides signed, scholarly profiles of cultural groups, including ethnonymic (the
proper name by which a people or ethnic group or major subgroup is known) information, the group’s
history, settlement, economy, kinship and family structure, socio-political organization, religion and
expressive culture.
Part 3. Find Books, Government Documents, and Audio-visual Sources
Use the Library catalog. To access the library catalog, click the Books & Media tab. Then type your
search terms into the search box, as follows. Remember to combine search terms with the word AND:
Review the list of titles and click on one that seems appropriate. The list will include books in our
general collection as well as audio-visual items and e-books. A symbol to the right of the item will
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indicate the format. Click to follow the link to access the e-book. For print books, ask a librarian for
assistance.
Part 3. Find Articles
Academic Search Premier. Search the database called Academic Search Premier for articles that
pertain to your chosen country. Access it by selecting ‘Find Articles & More’ and then clicking ALL
SUBJECTS next to Databases by Subject.
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Type your search, i.e. ‘Argentina AND literacy’ (another search could be literacy and poverty)
into the search box and click enter.
Limit to full text and the last (five or so) years using the panel on the left.
Brainstorm additional terms to further limit your search such as poverty, illiteracy, gender
inequality, children, women, marriage, economy, etc.
Review the articles --point to the magnifying glass to read the abstract (summary)
Click on the title of the article and then use the Cite and email tools under Tools on the right
for help with citations. Review them carefully, as they are not completely correct!
Business Source Premier. Try another database called Business Source Premier for business, trade,
and economic information. To access this database from the library home page, click the subject,
‘Business-Marketing’ next to Databases By Subject. Scroll down to select Business Source Premier,
and type the name of your country in the search box. On the next screen, limit your search to full text and
then limit the date to the last five years. Then, click Source Types and select “country reports”. This
will provide a list of country reports with economic information.
Additionally, the following search will work for some countries (use the name of your country, of
course): “Argentina Country Profile”; “Argentina Country Monitor”
Please ask for help as you work on your assignment! We are here to help you use the library’s resources. It’s our
job and we enjoy it! Stop by; call 215-641-6594; email refdesk@mc3.edu ; or chat on the website!
MBP 8/13