Finding Sources
- Library Search This link opens in a new window
Check out the Library Search which finds print and electronic items, including journal and newspaper articles, book chapters, books, reviews, legal documents, and much more. Note: Due to licensing restrictions, some content is only available to current students, faculty, and staff.
Keyword vs. Subject Searching
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Step 1: Start your search process by brainstorming a list of keywords that describe the main concepts of your topic or question. |
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Step 2: Use these keywords for your initial searches. Step 3: Use the Subject Heading links in the Library Catalog record to refine your search. |
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowLarge and important archive for academic journals, books, and primary sources in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Many journals do not have current issues.
- Black Studies Center / Proquest Black Studies This link opens in a new windowAfrican American content compiled from many Proquest resources. Scholarly essays and journals articles, recent periodicals, historical newspapers, archival records, reference books, and films are included. Content sourced from the African American Biographical Dictionary, The Schomburg Studies on the Black Experience, Index to Black Periodicals Full Text, Black Literature Index, and many others for historical newspapers and archival records.
- Historical Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Index of academic historical journals on the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present, including world history, military history, women's history, history of education, etc.
- ProQuest This link opens in a new window
Search all ProQuest databases simultaneously. Includes arts, humanities, social sciences, news, and science and technology.
- AfricaBib.orgOnline bibliography to African Studies journal citations and more.
- Periodicals Archive Online This link opens in a new windowHumanities and social sciences periodicals. Includes Foundation Collection. Sister database to Periodicals Index Online.
Google Scholar provides access to "peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles, from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly organizations."
What Google Scholar does not contain, in most cases, is the fulltext of the articles -- but it does work with the library's Findit@VU service to help you get to the fulltext when available. If you are on campus, Findit@VU will automatically appear -- but if you are off campus it won't. Not clicking on Findit@VU may lead to you receiving a message indicating that you must purchase the article to view it.
Bookmark this link as your access point to Google Scholar to ensure that the Findit@VU links appears in your searches or follow the instructions for setting your preferences in the video below. Don't get caught paying for articles when you don't have to!
- Southern African Films and Documentaries This link opens in a new windowPropaganda films, documentaries, newsreels, and interviews covering African history, politics, and culture. Films show township culture before apartheid, life under apartheid, and major historical events as they unfolded.
- Academic Video Online This link opens in a new windowDocumentaries, interviews, performances, news programs and newsreels, field recordings, commercials, raw footage, and thousands of award-winning films.
- Kanopy This link opens in a new windowOn-demand streaming video service for documentaries, training films, and theatrical releases. Films under a current license agreement are available for immediate viewing. Other films may require a request through the Kanopy site. Viewing films in a group forum is permitted as long as the viewing is by Vanderbilt authorized viewers only (current faculty, staff, or students) and it is not for commercial benefit (i.e. no admission costs are charged and no profit is made from the screening).
- Docuseek2 This link opens in a new windowStreaming access to documentary and social issue films from a variety of distributors, including Bullfrog, Collective Eye, and Icarus Films.
