WLC 300/400 Library Guide
World Languages and Cultures: Major Proseminar & Capstone
Choose the databases that best fit your topic for the best results.
Spanish & Latin American literature
Highly recommended:
Literature Resource Center provides access to biographies, bibliographies and critical analysis of authors from a variety of ages and literary disciplines.
MLA Bibliography comprehensive index to worldwide literature
Recommended:
Latino Literature Includes fiction, poetry and plays representing Chicano culture and various Latin American writers working in the United States.
Project Muse - arts, humanities, and social sciences
Others to consider:
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) Interdisciplinary index to 3000 journals, with full text of 1830 of them
Academic OneFile - interdisciplinary coverage of journals, many with full text available
Spanish language & linguistics
Recommended:
MLA Bibliography - language, linguistics, literature, folklore, literary theory and criticism, and the dramatic arts
Project Muse - arts, humanities, and social sciences
Others to consider:
Academic OneFile - interdisciplinary coverage of journals
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) - useful for all topics
Communication & Mass Media Complete - includes journals that focus on language
CountryWatch - information, data and news on all countries, including languages spoken
ERIC - education, including the educational aspects of language
Google Scholar - indexes a large proportion of the scholarly literature in a wide range of research areas
JSTOR Retrospective Journal Collection - includes journals that focus on language
PsycINFO - psychology, including the psychological aspects of language
Sociological Abstracts - sociology, including the sociological aspects of language
Japanese language & culture
Recommended:
Sociological Abstracts - sociology
JSTOR Retrospective Journal Collection - anthropology, archaeology, area studies, economics, education, geography, history, political science, sociology, statistics [also covers humanities]
Sage Journals - social sciences [also covers business, humanities, sciences]
Social Sciences Abstracts - anthropology, area studies, criminal justice, cultural studies, economics, geography, international relations, political science, public policy, social work, sociology
Others to consider:
Academic OneFile - useful for all topics
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) - useful for all topics
Communication & Mass Media - media studies
Google Scholar - indexes a large proportion of the scholarly literature in a wide range of research areas
Japanese majors may also consult the list of library research guides to find the recommended databases for other disciplines.
Use OneSearch to look for books on your topic.
Books at other libraries
In the OneSearch box, select "Books & Media (all CSU)" to search library catalogs of the 23 California State University campuses.
Use WorldCat to search library catalogs from around the world.
Use the ILLiad Interlibrary Loan Request Form to borrow books from other libraries.
Primary sources
Latino Literature includes fiction, poetry, and plays from Chicano and Latin American writers working in the United States.
The digital archive of Gabriel García Márquez includes drafts of his work along with photographs, letters, and other items from the author's files.
For credible statistics, news, and other information about the country of interest:
CountryWatch - information, data and news on all countries
CIA World Fact Book - Background information compiled by the CIA on all nations of the world
World Bank Open Data - Data about development in countries around the world
Also see statistics collected by the country's government:
Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía
Search the Gale Virtual Reference Library's online encyclopedias for background information on your topic.
Japanese
CiNii is a database service that enables searching of information on academic articles published in academic society journals or university research bulletins, or articles included in the National Diet Library's Japanese Periodicals Index Database.
Search the OneSearch box for your topic. On the results page, expand the "language" drop down menu and select "Japanese." You may also want to check the "search beyond CSUMB Library" option.
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO): Select Japanese under the language option.
Spanish
Search the OneSearch box for your topic. On the results page, expand the "language" drop down menu and select "Spanish." You may also want to check the "search beyond CSUMB Library" option.
Google Académico: The Spanish-language version of Google Scholar.
HLAS Online: Handbook of Latin American Studies: search extensive bibliography of citations to scholarly publications (in Spanish and English) about Latin America. Items may need to be requested via interlibrary loan.
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO): Select Spanish under the language option.
JSTOR Retrospective Journal Collection: Select Spanish under the language option.
MLA (Modern Language Association) Citation Style
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (print): 8th Edition
Using MLA Format (Purdue U. Online Writing Lab)
APA (American Psychological Association) Citation Style
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (print): 6th Edition
Using APA Format (Purdue U. Online Writing Lab)
Databases with citation formatting
Many of the Library's databases offer automatic citation formatting tools for APA, MLA and other citation styles.
The automatic formatting tools are not always 100% accurate, so check your results carefully. If you are in doubt, compare your results with examples from the most recent version of the appropriate style manual.