HIST 11A-12A: Cultures of Islam (Hanania)

This guide is designed to help you research sources for this specific class

This is a customized guide that will help you find the specific sources you need for your assignments based on your syllabus and your instructor's assignment information.

The top tabs are sorted by type of help you need.  You don't have to read through the whole guide, just go to whatever task you want help with.

• For more general research help, check out the box below and the boxes on the left column of this page.  We have lots more guides, tutorials, and one on one help options! 
• For any questions or help you can always contact me, Jen Pesek, your subject librarian.  I'll be very happy to answer your questions, help you find sources, help you learn how to research faster, create a research strategy, or any other research issues you might have.  You can email me directly at jpesek@scu.edu or make an appointment here.  There are no wrong questions, and wherever you are in the process is fine.  I'm here to support you!
• If you have an urgent question (maybe a link isn't working for you, or you just want to find a specific database), you can always use our 24 / 7 chat line. You get to talk to a real librarian, not a bot.  Give it a try.  

Tips for getting better resources more quickly

• Know which research tool you need.  Sometimes the library databases are much faster and more effective than google or google scholar.  Here's a handy guide to knowing when you will get the best results from each tool.
• Remember that different authors will use different words for the same concepts.  Think flexibly and use synonyms to find different sources on the same topic.  How do you know what synonym to use?  If you are searching the library databases use the tools outlined in this video.
• Remember that searching is a step by step process.  If you don't find what you want the first time, you aren't doing something wrong.  Test out different search terms, add and subtract terms to narrow and widen the field.  Keep refining your search little by little to get the sources you are looking for.

3. Start Searching

Find a Book (books are usually secondary sources)

OSCAR

Use OSCAR, the Library's catalog, to search for books. You may get other stuff, but mostly you'll get books.

Enter keywords or the title of a book you'd like.

OneSearch

You can also use OneSearch to find books and articles at the same time. If you go this route, practice becoming expert at using OneSearch.

Or Find Articles (Secondary Sources)

There are many databases that are good for topics of cultures of Islam. Try this trick:

Search Historical Abstracts, ATLA Religion, Academic Search Complete, and OmniFile all at once.

Enter any one of these databases individually, and following the directions below.

4. Evaluate your progress

What info do you have now, and what info do you still need?

Do you need more primary sources? Check out the primary sources tab.

5. Refine and Repeat

Research is iterative. Depending on where your search takes you, you will have to return to any of these steps as you work through the research process.