Library resources: Social studies

Library resources for students and researchers in social studies.

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Scientific knowledge is always based on research. Reliable and updated sources are key to achieve a good result. Please contact me if you have any questions about the library resources for social studies at UiS.

Ine Idsøe Fjelldal

Academic librarian, Social Studies ine.i.fjelldal@uis.no

Borrow a librarian

Faculty, PhD and master students at the Department of Social Studies can schedule an appointment for guidance in literature search or systematic searching.

The library collection

Is something is missing in the library? Suggest literature or subscriptions for the library collection, and we will consider buying it.

Collection of sources

Academic resources and information relevant for social studies.

Academic texts are built on different sources. Sources can include research articles, statistics, reports, governmental documents, laws and much more.

The latest reserarch and insight is often published in academic journals. There are tens of thousands of academic journals worldwide. About 33 000 journals and publishers are quality checked and approved by the Norwegian Register for Scientific Journals, Series and Publishers.

You can find an overview of the journals the library subscribes to in Oria. Use remote access to access the journals when you are not on campus.

Some recommended journals:

Pro tip! Use Browzine to get easy access to the journals you need, and create a virtual bookshelf to keep you updated.

Tidsskrift, åpent
Academic Journals publish new knowledge in articles. Use the journals to keep up with the newest research within your field of interest.
  • Government.no: Official website for the Norwegian Government (Regjeringen). Access to official documents documents such as The National Budget, reports, draft resolutions and bills, guidelines, white papers and much more.
  • NAV: Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration.
  • FHI: Norwegian Institute of Public Health
  • UDI: The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration
  • Barneombudet: The Norwegian Ombudsperson for Children
  • Publications from Nordic Cooperation: The Nordic Council of Ministers and the Nordic Council

Norwegian language:

Norwegian legal sources:

  • Lovdata Pro: Norwegian Laws and regulations
  • Rettsdata: Norwegian legal comments and much more
  • Juridika: Univesitetsforlagets collection of juridical journals and legal comments

Search in Oria

The database Oria covers the content of all Norwegian academic libraries.

Bokhylle i biblioteket - barnepsykologi

In Oria you can find books, e-books, journals, articles and more. You can search in English or Norwegian.

When you are connected to UiS Wifi you can open all electronic material through the «Available online» links. Remote access lets you access e-resources when you are note on campus.

Notice anything missing in the collection? Give a hint to your contact librarian!

Search for the book in Oria and find the location under "Get It" in the library.

The library uses the Dewey system to organize our books. The Dewey number lets you know he location of the book in the library.

How to read a Dewey number:

1. Find the exact numbers before the dot. (example 361.___)
2. Find the exact letters after the dot. (example 361.3)
3. When the numbers are correct, find the letters, organized in alphabetical order. (example 361.3 HEA)

Please ask at the help desk if you need help with finding the book.

Relevant books:

Books relevant for social studies will be located on various shelves in the library. Some relevant Dewey-numbers are:

  • 150. - Psychology
  • 300.72 – Research Methods
  • 301 – Sociology and anthropology
  • 344.03 - Justice: Social care
  • 361.3 – Social work
  • 362.7 – Child protective services
  • 610 – Medicine and health
  • 808.066 – Academic writing

Articles and journals

New research is often published as an article in a scientific journal. The library provides access to thousands of scientific journals from different fields of study.

  • Presents new knowledge
  • Has a reference list, the research presented should be replicable
  • Is peer-reviewed, meaning that other researchers have quality checked it
  • Published in journals (physical or digital)
  • Often has a structure which contains:
    - Abstract
    - Introduction/theory
    - Method
    - Results
    - Analysis/discission
    - Conclusion
    - Reference list

Example:

Ylvisaker, S., Rugkåsa, M., & Eide, K. (2015). Silenced stories of social work with minority ethnic families in Norway. Critical and Radical Social Work, 3(2), 221–236. http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/204986015X14331614908951

  • Are published regularly with new issues
  • Publish studies in the form of articles.
  • Can also contain book reviews, interviews, debates and more within the subject area. These parts of the journal are not peer-reviewed.

Example:

British Journal of Social Work

  • Popular magazines and journals within certain subjects can also publish popular science and relevant information.
  • These journals can be very useful to keep up with. However, the articles published have not the same academic quality as articles in academic journals. (No peer-review etc)

Databases

Research is systemized and collected in databases.

A database collects and systemizes thousands of scientific articles and make them searchable. The library at UiS subscribes to many different databases. See the full overview here.

Most databases are behind pay-walls. To get access outside UiS you must first log on with remote access.

Multidisciplinary databases

Databases in:

Full overview of all databases available through UiS.

The only database for searching in Norwegian is Oria. Choose "All Norwegian Academic Libraries" to search all academic libraries in Norway. You can request any material it in Oria, even though it is not physically at UiS.

Systematic searching

A systematic search for literature is a comprehensive and well-planned search in databases and other relevant sources. The use of search terms and keyword synonyms are important. The goal is to find as much literature as possible within a chosen area or topic. The searches should be documented and replicable.

Employees, PhD-students and master students at UiS can book individual guidance in searching and systematic searching. Contact for any inquiries. To get the most of a session it is important that you arrive prepared.

Before searching:

  • Define the key words for your search strategy
  • Choose relevant databases
  • Find relevant search terms: Subject terms, keywords
  • Choose exclusion criterias

More about searching:

Links to relevant pages about systematic searching.

Writing assignments

Cite you sources - always!

Source citations and APA 7

The Department of Social Studies usually use the citation style APA 7th.

The Citation Compass (Kildekompasset) gives examples and explanations on how to quote/cite any type of source, both in-text and in the reference list. Covers both APA6 and APA7.

Student theses

Former bachelor and master thesis can be found in the UiS archive Brage. You are welcome to look at these as inspiration, but please be aware that the grades can be from A to E.

News from The Department of Social Studies

Master's students at the Faculty of Social Sciences can now apply for publishing scholarship

A publishing scholarship of 45 000 NOK may be yours if you want to write an article version of your master's thesis.

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