CCSF Library: Sociology: Articles

Recommended Databases for Sociology

Databases are searchable containers of different source types such as books, magazines, journals, and (but not webpages, which you search on the open web). Databases are owned by a few different companies, and the library pays for access to make relevant sources available for your research. The sources in the databases are rarely available for free on the open web.

When doing research in Sociology, we recommend the following options:

OneSearch This link opens in a new window
Cross-searches most CCSF Library databases. Some resources are excluded. Learn more about searching in OneSearch.
SocINDEX with Full Text This link opens in a new window
Full-text research coverage of sociology and related disciplines. It features hundreds of full-text journals and millions of records with subject headings from a sociological thesaurus. Covers a broad range of studies, including gender studies, criminal justice, social psychology, religion, racial studies and social work.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
JSTOR is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources in a variety of subject areas including economics, history, sociology, and political science.
Humanities International Complete This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text journals, books and other published humanities sources from around the world. It includes all data from Humanities International Index plus unique full-text content.

Examples of Articles Representing Ethnography Research

Article Sources

Description

Magazines, journals, and newspapers, are types of "periodicals" - as in, they are published periodically throughout the year. There are many different intended audiences.
- Magazines are generally intended for a broader, public audience.
  - Examples: Scientific American, Vogue, and The Atlantic.
- Journals are often intended for a scholarly audience (scholars, academics, researchers, etc.) Many articles in these journals go through a rigorous publishing process called peer-review: they are written by an academic, submitted to the journal, and then circulated to experts in the field for checking before being published.
  - Examples: New England Journal of Medicine, The William and Mary Quarterly.
- Newspapers are usually written for a broader, public audience. They share the news of the day.
  - Examples: The New York Times, USA Today, The Guardian, the San Francisco Chronicle.

What do they contain?

Articles

How often are these sources published?

Magazines - usually monthly & quarterly (seasonally)
Journals - less frequently; can be monthly, but more likely quarterly
Newspapers - usually daily

Found in:

OneSearch - Periodicals
Easily locate CCSF subscribed periodicals (newspapers, journals, and magazines) in this particular view of OneSearch.
Journal Browse (BrowZine)
A clickable view of scholarly journals subscribed to by the CCSF Library.

Flipster This link opens in a new window
Easy-to-use digital magazine platform with People, National Geographic, and Archaeology. Pilot subscription runs through end of June 2025.
America's News This link opens in a new window
Features national, regional and local news content that delivers diverse perspectives on practically any issue, event or person as covered by the U.S. news media. With current content and archives back to the 1980s from more than 3,700 sources. Includes the San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco Examiner. Hot Topics can be browsed as well.
US Major Dailies This link opens in a new window
Provides access to The New York Times (1980-present), Washington Post (1988-present), Los Angeles Times (1985-present), Chicago Tribune (1985-present), and the Wall Street Journal (1984-present). Available by 8 AM U.S. Eastern time each day. Supplemental website content from these publications may not be included in this text based resource.

Search Strategies

Digital searching can work well when you combine your search words with "Boolean" connectors.

Boolean Connector	What does it do?
AND	narrows the results of a search, though without this operator, the AND is usually implied. This searches only for items containing both search terms. Example: health disparities AND urban
OR	expands or broadens the results of a search. This searches for either term, thus widening the possibilities. This is helpful when searching using synonyms. ("OR is more.") Example search string: genetically modified OR transgenic OR GMO
NOT	excludes specific terms that may be clouding your result set with irrelevant results not related to your topic. This is helpful when trying to remove some results. Example: nutrition NOT diet

Other strategies:

Identify key concepts. Include the useful or relevant keywords in your search, as well as synonyms, rather than a full question.
Use "Filters" to limit your source type, time period, and location.
Need "scholarly" articles? Use the "Peer-Reviewed Journals" filter.