Steven Thomas
Comparative Government - POLS 131
Books:
Most of the books on Countries are in the G section. Books on Government
are in the JK (American government) and JN (other governments) section
of the library.
Do a subject search using the
CCBC Dundalk Library Catalog to find books on your topic. Use the index or
table of contents in the books to narrow your search.
Suggested Reference Material:
The Europa World Yearbook 2003 Ref JN1.E85 2003
Countries
and their Cultures Ref GN 307.C68 2001
Encyclopedia of World
Cultures Ref GN 307.C68 2001
Worldmark Encyclopedia of the
Nations Ref G63.W67 2001
Latin America History and Culture
Ref F1406.E53 1996
Encyclopedia of the First World Ref G63.K87
1990
Encyclopedia of the Third World Ref HC59.7.K87
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Magazine, Journals, & Newspapers:
Go to the main
Magazine, Journal and Newspaper web page to find different ways to find
articles.
These are Library subscription databases- not internet
sources.
Go to our
List of All databases or
list of databases by subject .
Some full reports of information on government of different countries
are in the journals in our databases.
Click on
Electronic Magazines, Journals, and Newspapers by Title & Subject and
do a journal search by title for Country Review, Country Report (6 month
delay) and Country Profile. These titles are listed with different
countries. Not all countries are re presented. Use the suggested
database and search within the publication (example: journal title and
government).
Many of these articles are in PDF format. Be sure to
copy the database in which you found them for your bibliography.
Suggested databases:Business Source Premier and
Military & Government database is under EBSCO,
Also try
General Interest Periodical Databases such as: SIRS, Proquest
Direct, and Academic Search Premier in EBSCO, CQ Researcher
for general magazine and journal article.
Follow the
instructions for off-campus access.
Search Tips
for Databases - Remember to try different search words to find
information. Use your particular topic or use broad terms.
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Research Tips:
How to Do Research - helpful link on research
How to Write a Research Paper - From OCLC Hot Topics - June 5, 2002
Citing Sources -Make sure you use the correct citation for your research
material.
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Web Resources:
Use Evaluative Web Guides, such as Librarian's
Index to the Internet,and Subject Directories
to find web sites on your topic. They will give you links to more
specific information.
Use Search Engines,
such as Google or Meta Search Engines, such as
Vivismo to focus your search for web sites.
To get better results
connect your terms with the Boolean term "and"(ex:Switzerland and
government,) or put quotes around a phrase (ex:"current events".)
Performing Precise Searches on web searching
Evaluate: Evaluate your material for its relevance and authenticity. See
evaluation criteria for web sites.
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Suggested Web Sites:
Many of these
sites were from the Librarians' Index to the
Internet.*denote better sites
General Country Information:
CIA
World Factbook
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.htm from the C. I.
A. which contains Current information on countries -
geography,people,history,government, transportation, military,
communication etc.
*Country Studies /
Area Handbooks - http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html A
continuing series of books prepared by the Federal Research Division of
the Library of Congress under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program
sponsored by the Department of the Army. Describing and analyzing
political, economic, social, and national security systems and
institutions, and examining the interrelationships of those systems and
the ways they are shaped by cultural factors This series presently
contains studies of 100 countries.
*Background Notes
-http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/ Full-text and updated periodically, the
US State Department Background Notes on geographic entities. (Click
Countries & Regions at top tab, or region in text, country map to find
background information.) Organized by region and country or
international organization, there's a lot more information here than the
basic statistical and geographic information located in almanacs.
History, government and political conditions are discussed, as well as
the economy, foreign relations and basic travel information. Also listed
are principal US officials and consulate officers.
Portals to
the World - http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html "links
to electronic sources as selected by the Library of Congress subject
experts" for authoritative in-depth information about nations and other
areas of the world. Includes history, government and law, literature and
culture, business and residential directories, libraries and archives
and news and current events for each area. (Some dead links.)Might need
to change language.
Google Translation
Developing Countries:
Country Profiles
from The ELDIS Gateway to Development Information http://www.eldis.org/
Offers searchable access to world development information, including
agriculture, economics, education, trade, statistics, organizations, and
development sectors. Includes country profiles for Africa, Asia, Latin
America, and the Middle East; resource guides on development topics;
news; and Web links. From the ELDIS Programme, hosted by the Institute
of Development Studies at the University of Sussex. Many links. Search
gives online documents
Regions and Countries (The World Bank)
http://www.worldbank.org/html/extdr/regions.htm (Pull down menu for
countries on left side of web page) This excellent site provides easy
access to extensive economic data for over 100 developing nations and
six regions of the world. Brief narrative descriptions of economic
conditions and detailed tables of key economic indicators are available
for each country. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view the tables.
OneWorld Country
Guides http://www.oneworld.net/article/archive/3674/ This site
provides "a broad introduction to human rights and sustainable
development issues in each country, reflecting the views of global civil
society in general and OneWorld partners in particular." Features
original content and links to articles for countries in Africa, Asia,
the Middle East, and Latin America. (In depth country guides at left
column on bottom.)
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World Politics :
BBC News World
Edition: Country Profiles-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/ Profiles provide an
"instant guide" to news, history, politics, event timeliness, and
economic background of world countries. Presents country overviews,
basic facts, Web links, and details on leaders and media. Includes news
stories and audio and video clips from the BBC archives.
Political Resources on the
Net - http://www.politicalresources.net/ Comprehensive, annotated
directory of political sites available on the Internet, searchable and
sorted by country, with links to the political parties, information
about the political system, constitution, organizations, and the
national media. Excellent resource. It is updated.
International Affairs Resources -
http://www.etown.edu/vl/ Guide with more than 2000 annotated links
covering most topics that include information on Regions and Countries
on International Business; Peace, Conflict Resolution, and International
Security; Study and Work Abroad; Foreign Language resources; Human
Rights, International Development; World Religions; Health; and Global
Environment, among others.
Elections Around the World -
http://www.electionworld.org/ A comprehensive resource on elections in
every independent country and autonomous overseas dependency in the
world. In addition to detailed information on each country and its
political system and parties, there is an up-to-date calendar of
elections, upcoming and past (with results) back to 1995 and an
annotated list of links to several other political databases.
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Meta Sites on Government:
List of International
Governments from Librarian Index to the Internet
Gov Spot
- http://www.govspot.com/categories/worldgovernment.htm Links to web sites on
World Governments. Links to sites from their country in their native
language. Might need
Google Translation (Some dead links)
Keele Guides to Government
and Politics on the Internet http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/por/ These
links are designed to help researchers and students of politics. Sites
are included if they contain information or ideas relating to the study
or practice of politics
*Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) -
http://www.ipu.org/ THE site for information on national parliaments of
the world. The searchable PARLINE database has for each country: link to
official government siteGeneral information on each of the Parliament's
chambers; Description of the electoral system; Results of the most
recent elections; and Information on the presidency of each chamber.
There is also a directory of Web sites of parliaments for countries that
have them; PARLIT, a database of bibliographic references on
parliamentary law and practice; and a page of data on women in
parliaments
General Web Sites on Government:
Foreign
Government Resources from the *
University of Michigan Documents Center -
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/ Excellent meta-index of local,
national, and international government information. Foreign Government
Resources on the Web. (Click on Foreign Government than region- links to
official government site.
Governments on the WWW -
http://www.gksoft.com/govt/en/ A point of access for information on
government institutions on the Web, including parliaments, ministries,
offices, law courts, embassies, and city councils from more than 200
countries, plus political parties, party alliances, parliamentary
groups, and youth organizations of political parties on a national
level. Last updated 2003
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News:
Internet Public Library www.ipl.org/cgi-bin/reading/news.out.pl Contains
world wide online newspapers that can be searched by title,
geographically or keyword.
News Directory www.ecola.com/ Guide
to the world's English online media. It includes newspapers, magazines
and television broadcasters. It can be searched geographically and by
subject.
International Newspapers -
http://hometownfreepress.com/ A geographically organized directory of
sources of free local news and information sites around the world. Sites
include newspapers, radio/television stations, schools, civic, and civil
organizations. To date, more than 5,000 links
Online Reference News - Links to news sources
national, and alternative news
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Other Web Sites of Interest:
United Nations - Global
association of governments facilitating cooperation in international
law, security, economic...
Infonation -
http://www.un.org/Pubs/CyberSchoolBus/infonation/e_infonation.htm This
site is a two-step database that allows you to view statistical data for
the Member States of the United Nations. It covers "over 30 different
fields of information on 185 different countries from population to the
level of carbon emission, from the average temperature to the GDP."
Other resources from the United Nations CyberSchoolBus Resource Source
include data on global trends, city profiles, flags, country statistics,
and more.
Zarate's Political
Collections (ZPC) - http://www.terra.es/personal2/monolith/ Click on
Leaders by Countries This site from Spain has several useful
lists: Political leaders, 1945-date; Latest changes and elections;
Current leaders worldwide; Women world leaders, 1945-date; European
governments, 1990-date; First African rulers; Current leaders longest
time in office; and Rulers dead in violent circumstances, 1945-date.
Nice collection of unannotated related links. Also has Political
Obituary, 1990-date (in Spanish) - short descriptions of leaders with
date of death and basic political offices.
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