UCR      Libraries

• For sociological articles and other materials; 1963-present (abstracts after 1974)

• From any of the UCR Library pages:
  • Select "Databases by Subject"
  • Select "Psychology & Social Sciences/Sociology"
  • Select "Sociological Abstracts"

• See Connect from Home for more information (opens in a new window)

• Enter keywords
  • Multiple words are treated as a phrase, e.g., University of California
• Select the search field(s) from the drop down menu(s) (see below)
• Select Boolean connectors (AND, OR, NOT) to link your terms together
• Click "Search"
  
  
  
  
  
• Use Truncation & "Wildcard" symbols:
  • Any number of characters: *
    EXAMPLE: computer* (computers or computerization)
  • One character: ?
    EXAMPLE: wom?n (woman or women)
• Search multiple databases by selecting them using the "Change:" options
• Use the "Show..." menu to view results list records with:
  • "Short format" = title, author, source and abstract (if available);
  • "Full format" = all fields;
  • "Full -- omit refs" = all fields except bibliographic references;
  • "Custom format" = specify the fields you want to display

• The Thesaurus adds precision to searching by standardizing words or phrases used to represent concepts, e.g., the term "microcomputers" is used instead of "personal computers."
• Select "Sociological Thesaurus (English)" in the top box
• Enter your word in the "Browse Thesaurus for:" box
  
  
  
  
• Select the display option:
  • "Alphabetical Index" display a list of terms with no indication of relationships to other words;
  • "Hierarchy" displays the word, its relationship to other terms and explanatory notes;
  • "Rotated Index" displays a list of entries containing your word. You can only search for a single word.
• Click "Go"
• Click a hyperlinked term to display the full thesaurus entry
• To search a term:
  • Select it with the checkbox next to the desired term(s)
• Click the "Search" button on the left side of the screen

Find Fewer Articles

• Use more search words
• Limit entries to specific types of publications, such as articles or English only
• Set publication date to a smaller range of years

• Use fewer search words
• Put "or" between words

• The "Sort by" option lists results by:
  • Publication date - reverse chronological order
  • Relevance - records containing the term in the descriptors field appear first
• Click the title or the "View Record" link to obtain more information on the article

• Click the "UC-eLinks" icon
• In the 2nd window that opens, select to:
  • Retrieve the full text (if available);
  • Check Scotty to see if UCR owns the item;
  • Request the article through interlibrary loan.
• See Getting Started with UC-eLinks for more information (opens in a new window)

First steps:

• Return to the screen listing matching records
• Click the box to the left of each citation you want to print, email, or download
• Click the "Update Marked List" link located above the matching records list

• Click the "Save/Print/Email" link above the matching records list
• Select the "Marked" records
• Select which fields to include
  
• Email
  • Enter your email address in the field
  • Click the "Email" icon
• Download
  • Select your computer's operating system
  • Click the "Save" icon
  • Use the browsers "Save" feature after the formatted pages loads
• Print
  • Click the "Print preview" icon
  • Use the browser's "Print" feature after the formatted pages loads
• Use "QuikBib" to generate a formatted bibliography from your marked records.

• To search using descriptors:
  • Display a useful entry
  • Scroll down to the descriptors field
  • Select appropriate entries
  • Select "Use AND to narrow"
  • Click "Go"
    
  
  
• To see if a periodical is indexed:
  • Sociological Abstracts Journal List - (opens in a new window)
• Click the "Search History" link at the top to view/combine previous searches
  • By creating an "Alert" in the Search History section, the system will notify you, via email, of new content from your specified search.

• Click the "Help & Support" link in the upper right corner for additional assistance
• Ask a reference librarian