Library databases --  including our Library Catalog --  contain information about and, in many cases, full text for periodical articles, newspaper articles, books, book articles, dissertations and thesis, and other materials.

If you are expecting to see a cool search "widget" here that allows you to search a whole bunch of databases at once, I am afraid that won't really work for Chicana and Chicano Studies topics.

Why? Because ...

THE MOST USEFUL DATABASES WILL DEPEND ON YOUR TOPIC.

For example, if your topic is about Chicano Art you should consider taking a look at the listings of Art databases, Chicano Music, try the Music databases, Chicano literature then it would be the literature databases, social issues in the Chicano community will need our sociology databases, the history of Chicanos, then history databases, education, politics, etc.

If you do not find resources covering your topic in this guide, you should consider checking out the Databases by Subject area under Find Databases for additional resources.

There are also many useful web sites that can contribute valuable information for your research. Government and non-government organizations often gather statistical data, conduct research studies, and collect information from other sources on thousands of topics of interest to researchers. It is important to know where you are and to consider who and why a web site was created.

Please explore the links below that can give you more information about possible resources for Chicana and Chicano Studies topics.

Explore your topic before you get bogged down in the details. Encyclopedia and reference book articles can bring you up-to-speed on your topic, provide definitions, background information, timelines, dates, basic statistics and even theoretical explanations about how we know what we know about a topic.Find additional print reference books on your topic by searching the library's catalog.

These databases cover a multitude of subjects and material types including journal, magazine and newspaper articles, books, e-books, book chapters, video, audio, dissertations, government documents, etc. Some contain full text. In others you will need to click on the "Find it" button to see if we own it or have access to it.

Select databases that are in the subject area of your topic. If the full text is not available in the database you are using, use the "Find it" button to see if it we own a print copy or have access to the full text in another database.

Access books and ebooks. For items we do not own try InterLibrary Loan (ILLIAD).

Newspaper articles reflect the news of the day. Rarely are articles in depth and often contain inaccuracies, but they give a picture of what is thought to be important by media elites. Be careful, how you search will dictate the articles you find. In historical newspapers, the terms used may not be ones you are used to seeing. Also what is missing may be more important than what you find. Intrigued? Contact Barbara Miller, the CRC Librarian for more information.