This guide covers search tools for research in topics related to sociology.
Start with:
Use multi-disciplinary databases to gain a broad understanding of your topic. Reference materials and books can also be helpful in the early stages of research.
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Google Scholar (Setup connection to get to PDFs)Use Google Scholar to find articles from academic publishers, professional societies, research institutes, and scholarly repositories from colleges and universities. If you are using from off-campus access, change the "Library Settings" to University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Look for the "FindIt@U of M Twin Cities" links in your Google Scholar search results to access full text and PDFs. View this tutorial to learn how to go from a general idea to a very precise set of results of journal articles and scholarly materials.
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Libraries SearchSearch the University of Minnesota Libraries to find books, scholarly journal articles, news, magazines, media, and other items in the University's collection. View this tutorial to learn how to go from a general idea to a very precise set of results of journal articles and scholarly materials.
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Web of ScienceA comprehensive interdisciplinary collection of journal article citations. Subjects generally covered are within science and technology, arts and humanities, and social sciences. View this tutorial to learn how to go from a general idea to a very precise set of results of journal articles and scholarly materials.
Then try the following:
Use discipline-specific databases (like the ones below) to get precise information from scholarly journal articles related to your topic. Find more databases with journal articles for sociology research.
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Sociological AbstractsThis core database for the field of sociology contains information on sociology and social policy worldwide. Sociological Abstracts includes citations from the 1952-present. It provides abstracting and indexing of articles and book reviews drawn from thousands of journal publications, plus books, book chapters, dissertations, conference papers, and working papers.
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Race Relations AbstractsDiscover articles covering essential areas related to race relations, including ethnic studies, discrimination, immigration studies, and other areas of key relevance to the discipline.
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Criminal Justice DatabaseCriminal Justice Database supports research on crime, its causes and impacts, legal and social implications, as well as litigation and crime trends. It includes U.S. and international scholarly journals, and correctional and law enforcement trade publications, dissertations, crime reports, crime blogs and other material relevant for researchers or those preparing for careers in criminal justice, law enforcement and related fields.
Also check out:
Specialized databases like the ones listed below can help with finding news and media, or data and statistics.
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U.S. Newsstream This link opens in a new windowSearch the most recent premium U.S. news content, as well as archives which stretch back into the 1980s featuring newspapers, newswires, blogs, and news sites in active full-text format.
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MasterFile CompleteSearch magazines, with a small number of journals and newspapers, covering a broad range of disciplines and topics. Includes photos and multimedia.
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ProQuest Statistical Abstract of the U.S. (2013-present) This link opens in a new windowThe Statistical Abstract of the United States database provides enhanced online access to key federal statistical tables covering demographics, economics, and social indicators. The Statistical Abstract, in publication since 1878, is a key starting point for determining the statistical measures used by the United States government. Updated monthly. Access to 2013-present. See Census Statistical Abstract for 1878-2012.
Last Updated: Jun 26, 2025 2:25 PM
URL: https://libguides.umn.edu/sociology