Research Guides: AFST 306: Black Digitality: Finding Articles and More

What is a Database?

What is a database?

The library databases contain journal articles and other scholarly information, as well as magazines, newspaper articles, and non-scholarly info.

Sometimes a database will contain the entire journal article, and sometimes it will only contain an abstract. Databases are searchable by subject, keyword, author, and more. They can be seen as the tool that you use to search and access scholarly publications, such as peer-reviewed journal articles.

Finding Journal Articles

Best Bets

Really, your best bet for finding articles is to decide where researchers will likely be writing. Swem Library databases, linked below, are organized by category, usually aligning by discipline. You might also find valuable information in our Multidisciplinary databases - like Academic Search Complete, also below.

Swem Library Databases

Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
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Multidisciplinary database of journal articles (including peer reviewed), books, book chapters, reports, conference proceedings, etc. Coverage: 1887-present.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary full-text journal articles from 1,500 major journals. Please note: In many cases, JSTOR does not include the most recent 3 to 5 years of these journals. Please use other databases to retrieve recent articles, especially for current events topics. Coverage: Varies by title. Access is available to 2007+ alumni; requires W&M userid and password.
Communication and Mass Media Complete This link opens in a new window
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Communications, journalism, and mass media studies. Journal articles, also searchable cited references. Coverage: 1915-present.
Google Scholar This link opens in a new window
Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines.
SocINDEX with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Offers comprehensive coverage of sociology, encompassing all sub-disciplines and closely related areas of study. These include abortion, criminology & criminal justice, demography, ethnic & racial studies, gender studies, marriage & family, political sociology, religion, rural & urban sociology, social development, social psychology, social structure, social work, socio-cultural anthropology, sociological history, sociological research, sociological theory, substance abuse & other addictions, violence and many others.
Sociological Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. Citations to journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, and conference papers. Some cited references are included. Coverage: 1952-present.
MLA International Bibliography with Full-Text This link opens in a new window
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Produced by the Modern Language Association (MLA), the MLA International Bibliography is the definitive index for the study of language, literature, linguistics, rhetoric and composition, folklore, and film, covering scholarly publications from the early 20th century to the present.
Music Index This link opens in a new window
Classical and popular music, musicians, and the music industry. International coverage with citations in journal articles, book reviews, record reviews, news, and obituaries. Coverage: 1970-present.
Black Life in America This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive coverage of the African American experience from the early 18th century to the present. Sourced from more than 19,000 American and global news sources.
Black Thought and Culture This link opens in a new window
Black Thought and Culture contains 1,303 sources with 1,210 authors, covering the non-fiction published works of leading African Americans. Particular care has been taken to index this material so that it can be searched more thoroughly than ever before. Where possible the complete published non-fiction works are included, as well as interviews, journal articles, speeches, essays, pamphlets, letters and other fugitive material.
Black Studies Center (1893-current) This link opens in a new window
Black Studies Center consists of scholarly journals, commissioned overview essays by top scholars in Black Studies, historic indexes, and the full-text of The Chicago Defender newspaper from 1910-1975.
America: History & Life with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Provides full text coverage of the history and culture of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present. Includes nearly 200 journals and 100 books, selective indexing for over 1,700 journals, and abstracts in English of foreign language articles.
Computers & Applied Sciences Complete This link opens in a new window
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Engineering, computer theory and systems, and new technologies in their social and professional contexts. Citations to journal articles, professional publications, and reference sources. Also includes searchable cited references for key journals. Coverage: 1965-present.
AnthroSource This link opens in a new window
All aspects of anthropology. Journal articles, books, bulletins, and newsletters from the American Anthropological Association. Coverage: varies by title.

Constructing a good search

Not finding anything?

Try a different database! You can find our full list of library databases on Swem's website.
Try different search terms! Not finding anything for "socioeconomic status"? Try a synonym like "income" or a related concept like "income disparity".
Ask a librarian! You can make a research appointment for some one-on-one help, chat with us when the research desk is open, drop on by for a visit, or even shoot us an email. We love to help!

AFST 306: Black Digitality

Accessing Articles

How to Access Articles

Primary Sources