New books for SPS – July

Posted on August 5, 2014 by spslibrarian

This month we’re featuring a small selection of new titles purchased to support the area of Politics and International Relations in the School of Social and Political Science.

Democracy and the limits of self-government by Adam Przeworski. (shelfmark: JC421 Prz. Also available as e-book.)

The United States, Israel, and the Search for International Order by Cameron G. Thies. (shelfmark: JZ1242 Thi.)

Europe and the Governance of Global Finance edited by Daniel Mügge. (shelfmark: HG186.A2 Eur.)

Continue reading →

New online resources for SPS: China Law Info and PAIS International

Posted on July 29, 2014 by spslibrarian

The Library has recently subscribed to the online databases China Law Info and PAIS International.

China Law Info
China Law Info is a bilingual database for China legal documents and information. The database provides both the original Chinese version and the English translation of China laws and regulations, judicial cases, tax treaties, white papers, law journals and gazettes, as well as other China legal information such as legal news and legislative/regulatory updates. The database is updated daily.

PAIS International
PAIS (originally, the Public Affairs Information Service) International covers issues in the public debate through selective coverage of a wide variety of international sources including journal articles, books, government documents, statistical directories, grey literature, research reports, conference papers, web content, and more. PAIS International is the current file covering 1972 to present. Fields of study covered include:

Civil rights movement
Economic conditions
Energy resources and policy
Government
Health conditions
Human rights
International relations
Labour conditions and policy
Politics
Social conditions

You can access China Law Info and PAIS International via the Databases A-Z list on the Library website.

Caroline Stirling – Academic Support Librarian for Social and Political Science

Sport and social sciences: A Commonwealth Games inspired reading list

Posted on July 23, 2014 by spslibrarian

The 2014 Commonwealth Games start today and we’ve had a look through the wealth of e-books currently available to University staff and students at the Library, to pull together just a small number of titles that look at different aspects of sport related to social and political science.

Sport, culture and society: an introduction by Grant Jarvie with James Thornton looks at the place of sport in contemporary society and culture. It argues that sport is part of our social and cultural fabric, possessing a social and commercial power that makes it a potent force in the world, for good and for bad. It looks at how sport has helped to start wars and promote international reconciliation, while every government around the world commits public resources to sport because of its perceived benefits. Continue reading →

Better together or better apart? Some useful resources on the Scottish referendum.

Posted on June 4, 2014 by spslibrarian

On the 18^th September 2014 Scotland will vote yes or no to independence. There are a wealth of online resources available that can help with your research or help to inform your vote on the 18^th September and here are just a small number that you may find useful.

Referendum on Independence Key Texts has been put together by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) and is intended to be useful to those seeking information on the Referendum on Independence for Scotland, and on the debate around the Referendum. Every effort is made to ensure that both sides of the debate (and neutral commentators) are covered. It is not an exhaustive resource and does not include material from the media e.g. BBC, newspapers, etc., or personal blogs, twitter, etc., however, there are a wide range of resources covered. Continue reading →

European Parliament elections 2014 – suggested resources for your research

Posted on May 20, 2014 by spslibrarian

Voting will take place in the UK on Thursday 24th May for the European Parliament elections 2014. If you are thinking of voting or interested in doing research in this area then you may find some of these resources useful.

Library Resources

These are mostly resources that have been subscribed to by the Library and are only available to staff and students at University of Edinburgh. You can use these to find newspaper articles and commentaries, academic literature, background reading and documentaries and news programmes.

ASSIA (Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts)
Provides abstracts from around 650 UK, US and international journals. Coverage includes all branches of the applied social sciences, with over 375,000 records.

Box of Broadcasts
As mentioned in a previous blog post, this service is a bit like BBC iPlayer but offers much, much more. The service allows you to record and catch-up on missed programmes, schedule recordings, edit programmes into clips, search for recordings already made by other users, etc. Includes 60+ TV and radio channels.

European Sources Online
European Sources Online (ESO) is an online database and information service which provides access to information on the institutions and activities of the European Union, the countries, regions and other international organisations of Europe, and on issues of importance to European researchers, citizens and stakeholders.

Factiva (off-campus access available via VPN)
Provides full-text access to a large number of UK newspapers as well as full-text access to a significant range of international newspapers and news sources.

IBSS (International Bibliography of Social Science)
Produced by the British Library of Political and Economic Science. One of the largest and most comprehensive social sciences databases in the world, indexing 2600 journals and 6000 books per annum, in the core disciplines of economics, sociology, politics and anthropology.

Lexis Library and Nexis UK (off-campus access by clicking on Login via Academic Sign In and UK federation)
Lexis Library includes full-text access to the vast majority of UK broadsheet and tabloid newspapers and a large number of local papers. Nexis UK provides full-text access to a large number of international newspapers and news sources.

Web of Science Core Collection, including Social Sciences Citation Index
One of the biggest online abstracting and indexing databases. Contains citations and abstracts to millions of journal articles and conference proceedings from all subjects. Impact factors, h-indexes and email alerts available.

The LSE Review of Books has suggested some books related to the European Parliament elections. You can see the full list on their blog but the following are available at the Library, just search the Library Catalogue for the title or author:

How Europe Shapes British Public Policy by Janice Morphet
Lobbying in the European Union: Interest groups, lobbying coalitions, and policy change by Heike Kluver
The Democratic Foundations of Policy Diffusion: How health, family and employment laws spread across countries by Katerina Linos
Right-Wing Populism in Europe: Politics and discourse, edited by Ruth Wodak, Majid KhsraviNik and Brigitte Mral.

Tip: An easy way to find other books on similar subject areas is to click on the “Subjects” listed in the Catalogue record or for print books you can also click on the Shelfmark.

Freely available online resources

These are just a small number of online resources available:

European Parliament site for the elections
European Parliament/Information Office in the United Kingdom
PollWatch2014
BBC News
EuroVote
London School of Economics EUROPP blog

Caroline Stirling – Academic Support Librarian for Social and Political Science

New e-resources trials available

Posted on May 13, 2014 by spslibrarian

The Library has set up trial access to a number of online resources that may be useful for those studying politics and international relations. These include:

Declassified Documents Reference System
Allows researchers to easily and quickly access and review selected previously classified government documents. This digital collection fills an important gap in post-World War II domestic and foreign policy studies and provides unique opportunities for undergraduate and graduate comprehensive research in a rich primary source. In addition, it provides basic research for journalism, public policy studies, international law and security, and other disciplines. Available until 9th June 2014

Peace Research Abstracts
Includes bibliographic records covering essential areas related to peace research, including conflict resolution, international affairs, peace psychology, and other areas of key relevance to the discipline. The index contains more than 267,000 records which are carefully selected from the most important sources within the discipline, such as: Journal of Peace Research, Journal of Conflict Resolution, International Journal of Refugee Law, etc. Available until 12th June 2014

Yearbook of International Organizations Online
Compiled by the UIA (Union of International Associations) the Yearbook of International Organizations Online is the most comprehensive reference work and information resource on international non-profit organizations and associations worldwide. The Yearbook includes detailed descriptions of international organizations, and also includes relationships and cross-links with other listed international organizations. In addition, biographical information is provided on principal officers, as well as bibliographical information on the organization’s main publications and information services. Available until 9th June 2014.

Congressional Record 1789-1997
ProQuest Congressional is a comprehensive resource for all congressional activities, providing users access to the most comprehensive collection of historic and current congressional information available anywhere online. Available until 5th June 2014

Armed Conflict Database (ACD)
ACD monitors armed conflicts worldwide, focusing on political, military and humanitarian trends in current conflicts, whether they are local rebellions, long-term insurgencies, civil wars or inter-state conflicts. Available until 11th June 2014

PAIS International
This resource covers issues in the public debate through selective coverage of a wide variety of international sources including journal articles, books, government documents, statistical directories, grey literature, research reports, conference papers, web content, and more. PAIS International is the current file covering 1972 to present. Available until 13th June 2014.

Europa World Plus
Europa World Plus is the online version of the Europa World Year Book and the nine-volume Europa Regional Surveys of the World series. First published in 1926, the year book is renowned as one of the world’s leading reference works, covering political and economic information in more than 250 countries and territories. Available until 22nd June 2014.

These can all be accessed via the E-resources trials website: www.ed.ac.uk/is/databases-trials

There are feedback forms available and we would welcome feedback as this a key part of making a case to subscribe to resources like these.

Caroline Stirling – Academic Support Librarian for Social and Political Science

SPS Librarian

Academic Support Librarians for staff & students in the School of Social and Political Science blogging on Library resources, services and skills.

Tag Archives: politics

New books for SPS – July

Sport and social sciences: A Commonwealth Games inspired reading list

Better together or better apart? Some useful resources on the Scottish referendum.

European Parliament elections 2014 – suggested resources for your research

New e-resources trials available