http://myweb.uiowa.edu/eraber/PostwarSov.htm

 

Colloquium for History Majors (European):  Postwar Soviet Life & Culture

16E:051:002

Professor Paula Michaels

Ericka A. Raber, Librarian (ericka-raber@uiowa.edu)

 

Terms:

 

A primary resource is information that originates directly from the source created at the time historical events occurred or well after events in the form of memoirs or oral histories.  Examples include autobiographies, text of interviews, newspaper articles reporting current events, annual reports of businesses, laws issued by Congress.

 

A secondary resource is a work that attempts to interpret or analyze a subject.  Examples include biographies and journal articles.

Research Strategy

  • Select a general topic, then narrow the issue as your investigation progresses
  • Use browseable sources (often in paper format) that have cross-references
  • Seek out reference tools (like encyclopedias, specialized dictionaries) to:
    • Gain an understanding of the subject matter
    • Learn relevant vocabulary
    • Gather background information to understand the issues
    • Ask a librarian
  • Find a variety of source types including books, articles, Internet sources, etc.
  • Focus on the topic
    • Take notes
    • Follow footnotes and investigate bibliographies
  • Evaluate the source of information
  • Refine your strategy; Reflect to develop your understanding; Assess usefulness of information; Construct new knowledge; Think about the research process and your product
  • Mine for sources:footnotes

 

Selected Resources

 

UI Library Catalog

Sample Reference Books

                       

Russia and Eastern Europe : a bibliographic guide to English-language publications, 1992-1999 / Helen F. Sullivan, Robert H. Burger.  MAIN REF Z2483 .S86 2001

 

The Rise and fall of the Soviet Union : a selected bibliography of sources in English / edited by Abraham J. Edelheit and Hershel Edelheit.  MAIN REF Z2510.3 .R57 1992

 

Soviet studies guide / edited by Tania Konn.  MAIN REF DK266 .S5755 1992

 

 

For primary source material in catalog, try advanced search with your topic as keyword or subject AND “sources or diaries or narratives or correspondence or manuscripts or archives or interviews or document*”

 

 

 

Use the library catalog for:

 

Moscow News

Index and full text for 1992- only (LexisNexis).  Otherwise, browse dates of particular events on microfiche in Media Services.

 

Current Digest of the Soviet Press

Shelved on the 3rd floor, Main Library; bound volumes contain general index and personal name index (some electronic indexing through PAIS and LexisNexis (below))

 

 

Use InfoHawk for:

London Times (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/timesda)

 

New York Times – Proquest: Historical Newspapers (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/proquest/nyt) Contains full-text access to articles dating from 1851 (New York Daily Times) to the 2001.

 

LexisNexis Academic (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/lexis/universe)
Allows you to search Current Digest of the Soviet Press from June 1, 1983 through current. See "sources" to do a search within a particular newspaper or journal title. Print copies of Current Digest of the Soviet Press available (v. 1-43; Feb. 1, 1949-Jan. 29, 1992) in the Main Library, third floor, periodicals. Some indexing of Current Digest is available through PAIS(see above).  Title continued as Current Digest of the Post-Soviet Press

 

Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) is the sources of World News Connection.  Topics:  good for international relations, much less information on cultural issues.  Print index in Gov Pubs (3rd floor) D 839 .U6742 1997-.  Index to FBIS (1977 to 1996) available at Information Desk Software 5079.  The full-text of these news stories are on microfiche in the Reference Department of the Main Library:  Microfiche PREX 7.10:  FBIS-SOV-.

 

World News Connection (http://proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/login?url=http://wnc.dialog.com/) A foreign news service from the U.S. Government. (1994?-)

 

LexisNexis Congressional (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/lexis/cis)

            CIS Index

            Historical Indexes

 

Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS):  Considered the most comprehensive and authoritative publication of its kind, FRUS present the official documentary historical record of major foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity of the United States government from 1860-1960.  A research guide is available at

http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/govpubs/guides/ForeignRelationsUS.htm

online volumes (selective 1945-1976):  http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ho/frus/c1716.htm
searchable database (incomplete run from 1861-1960; some search capabilities -1992):  http://libtext-dev.library.wisc.edu/FRUS/

Historical Abstracts (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/abcclio/ha): Historical Abstracts provides citations with abstracts to articles in over 2000 journals, published 1954 to the present and offers coverage of world history from 1450 onward.

 

PAIS International (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/pais)
PAIS International covers the literature of public affairs including political, economic and social issues. Includes some indexing of Current Digest of the Soviet Press.

 

ABSEES (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/ebsco/absees)  North American scholarship on East-Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Indexing from 1990-. For earlier indexing see bound copies in Reference:   Z2483 .A65.

 

Worldcat (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/oclc/worldcat)
A bibliographic database of over 40,000,000 records from over 2,000 libraries around the world.

 

Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com/) From on campus Google Scholar will use UI Libraries’ InfoLink when available.  From off campus, select University of Iowa from the preferences to engage this functionality.

JSTOR (http://purl.lib.uiowa.edu/jstor/jstor)

 

 

On the Web (for free):

 

Revelations from the Russian Archives
A Library of Congress collection of Soviet archival material on domestic and foreign policies, and Soviet-American relations.

 

Cold War International History Project

http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?topic_id=1409&fuseaction=topics.home

 

Academic Info

http://www.academicinfo.net/

 

 

 

 

Make good and early use of the UI Libraries’ InterLibrary Loan department!  From the Libraries home page > Contact Staff/Request Forms > InterLibrary Loan Department (http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/ill/)