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Research Guides

HIS101: Histories of Violence

Articles

Use the Library website to find journal articles

Begin on the library homepage. Use the search bar in the middle of your screen to find books, journals and other resources in our library catalogue. Using the search bar also allows you to search across multiple databases.

In the search box, type in the keywords relevant to your research topic. 

For example, if someone wanted to research slavery and resistance movements in the United States, they could search:

slavery resistance united states

The Library website will show a series of results: Articles, Books, Journals, Book Chapters, Theses and more.

There are two ways to find scholarly articles: Under Format, select Articles OR under Show Only, select Peer-reviewed articles. At the bottom of the filter list, click the 'Apply Filters' button.

 

 

Narrowing down the list to get better articles

Sometimes, a search will give you hundreds of results. Searches can be filtered by Subject, Language, Publication Date, and Language.

You can also narrow down your search results by adding different keywords. If you are looking for a specific phrase or multi-word term to be in the search results, such as the term Slave Revolt, put the phrase in quotes: "slave revolt". 

Identifying book reviews

While searching for journal articles, you may come across book reviews. Examine the citation for the article to distinguish between journal articles and book reviews.

  • "Book Review" may be a subject heading in the search results;
  • Their format may be listed as a Review, which you can filter for/exclude using the right-hand panel on the Library website;
  • The author of the review and the author of the book are sometimes both indicated;
  • The book publisher information may be included in the title;
  • Books reviews are often short (only a couple pages).

Book reviews serve many purposes, and can help you determine if a book would be of value to your research. It is recommended that you read and use quotes and ideas from the book itself, and not the book review in your papers, research and other academic output.

Books

Use the Library website to find books

In the library homepage search box, type in the keywords relevant to your research topic. When searching for books, remember to use simple, broad keywords.

From the list of results, you can either click the Books button under the search bar, or select Books under the formats filter on the left side of the page.

Narrow down the list of books

You can refine your search with various filters on the left sidebar, such as Library, Subject, Language, Subject Time Period, and Publication Date.

If you're looking for ebooks/ books you can read online, go to the filters on the left side to 'Show Only' and select Online.

If you want to find physical books you can check out from a library, go to the filters on the left side to 'Show Only' and select Physical Copy.

 

Finding books in-person at Robarts Library

  1. Look at the call number for the book in the catalogue record:
  2. Take the elevators from the 1st-4th floors of Robarts Library.
  3. The books at Robarts are on the 9th to 13th floor.  The Robarts Library Stack Guide tells you which call numbers are on which floor, according to the first letter or letters. In this case, E is on the 10th floor, with most other history books. 
  4. Once you are on the floor, find the section with the correct letters. Then work your way through each line of the call number.
  5. To sign out your book, take it down with you to the 1st floor and use one of the automatic machines, or to the loan services desk near the front entrance.

If you need any help to find books, ask at the staff at the loan services desk.

Primary sources

What is a Primary Source?
  • Primary sources provide first-hand testimony or direct evidence concerning a topic under investigation.
  • They are created by witnesses or recorders who experienced or witnessed the events or conditions being documented.

What kinds of things can be primary sources?

Think about what kinds of primary sources might be related to your topic:

letters newspapers pamphlets
interviews reports maps
diaries government documents film
memoirs institutional records photographs
Things to keep in mind when looking for primary sources:
  • Start with what you already have - look at course materials and secondary sources to identify citations to primary sources, key words, and historical figures. 
  • There isn’t going to be only one place to search for them.
  • Search tools and databases (if you use them) will be unique, and will take time and experimentation to use effectively.
  • Consider language in your search for primary sources (i.e. historical or outdated language, place name changes, and untranslated sources).
  • Not everyone’s primary sources were collected—the historical record is incomplete and leaves out many voices.
  • Working with primary sources related to colonized or other marginalized peoples may be very upsetting, please take care. 
  • Ask for help! Primary sources can be very challenging to find, and U of T Librarians are here to help you in your search.

You may not be required to use primary sources for your work in HIS101. If you're looking for more information on primary sources, please see our Primary Sources research page and our list of History Primary Source databases.

Chosing and evaluating sources

When choosing books or articles for your paper, consider the following:

  • Are they relevant to your topic, and the argument that you wish to make?
  • Are they current? Some of your sources should reflect current research.
  • Are they substantial? Beware of an article that is only a couple of pages.
  • Are they scholarly? Distinguish between popular and scholarly sources 

Scholarly journal articles report on original research by experts in a particular academic discipline. Often they go through a peer-review process, which means that they are evaluated by reputable scholars in the field before they are published.

You can use Ulrich's Periodical Directory to determine if a journal (not an article, but the publication it was published in) is peer reviewed.

Criteria for evaluating scholarly journals

Author:

Who wrote it? What are their credentials?

Sources:

Does the author acknowledge his or her sources? How?

Content:

Is the content substantial?

Does it appear to be valid and well-researched?

Does it make sense, based on your own background knowledge, or what other articles have to say on the topic? 

Writing:

Is the language scholarly?

Is the article well written?

Do illustrations and data support the content in a scholarly fashion, or do they appear to be attention-getting, or sensational?

Audience:

Who is the article written for?

Is it written for experts and researchers in the field, or for members of the general public?

Journal:

Is it published in a scholarly journal?

 

RADAR (Rationale, Authority, Date, Accuracy, and Relevance)

Another helpful way to evaluate the credibility of a information source is through the framework RADAR (Rationale, Authority, Date, Accuracy, and Relevance). See the guide for using RADAR for more detailed guidelines about how to evaluate the quality and usefulness of an information source for your research

Adapted from: Mandalios, J. (2013). RADAR: An approach for helping students evaluate Internet sources. Journal of Information Science, 39(4), 470–478,

Research and writing

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Citation help

Chicago style citation resources

TIP: Library catalogue and databases can generate citations- but check their work!

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