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Welcome to the Communications Library Resources Page!
Click the tabs to the left for help locating relevant books, articles, and websites, as well as help formatting your paper and citing sources in MLA style. The resources listed have been specially selected for your class by your instructors and librarians. If you have questions, please contact the library using the contact information listed below the navigation menu.
Topics and Search Terms
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Marketing:
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Advertising:
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Consumer Research:
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Consumer Attittudes:
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Products:
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Business Organizations:
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Lifestyle and Behavior:
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Shopping:
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Consumer Protection:
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Library of Congress Classification Outline: Class H - Social Sciences (loc.gov)
Sources Types
Books cover virtually any topic, fact or fiction. For research purposes, you will probably be looking for books that summarize all the information on one topic.
Libraries organize and store their book collections on shelves called "stacks." Books are also available online through the Library's eBook databases.
Use a Book
- when looking for a lot of information on a topic
- to put your topic in context with other important issues
- to find historical information
- to find summaries of research to support an argument
Magazines publish articles on topics of popular interest and current events. The articles are written by journalists and are for the general public.
Magazines, like journals and newspapers, are called "periodicals" because they are published at regular intervals throughout the year.
You can find some print magazines in the library and many more online through the Library's databases.
Use a Magazine
- to find information or opinions about popular culture
- to find up-to-date information about current events
- to find general articles written for people who are not necessarily specialists
Newspapers provide information about current events and topics of local interest. Newspapers, like journals and magazines, are called "periodicals" because they are published regularly, typically daily.
Use a Newspaper
- to find current information about international, national and local events
- to find editorials, commentaries, expert or popular opinions
You can find newspapers in print or microfilm format, or on the Web as electronic newspapers. Most newspapers are made available to you by subscriptions purchased by your library. Most newspapers have their own Web sites with today's news. Many times their Web sites provide access to earlier articles.
Journal articles are written by scholars in an academic or professional field. An editorial board reviews articles to decide whether they should be published. Journal articles may cover very specific topics or narrow fields of research. A subset of journals are referred to as "peer reviewed," which means that they are reviewed by a set of experts before publishing to ensure high quality, original research.
Examples of journals include The Journal of Modern History, Journal of Educational Psychology, and The American Journal of Nursing.
The Library purchases subscriptions to many journals through our online databases.
Use a Journal
- when doing scholarly research
- to find out what has been studied on your topic
- to find bibliographies that point to other relevant research
Information Cycle
Different types of sources have different publication cycles. For example, newspapers are usually published daily, so a newspaper would be a good source for information on daily events, such as a speech that the president gave yesterday.
A magazine may be published once a week or monthly. You may wish to use a magazine to find information about current social trends or commentary on recent events.
Academic journals are typically published only a few times a year. Use an academic journal to find detailed scholarly information, such as literary criticism or scientific research.
Books can take years to publish. Books are good sources of background information, such as the history of the railroads or statistics on the number of children immunized against diseases in the United States.
The video below explains how the information cycle effects the content that each type of source delivers.