LIBRARY RESOURCES
The Library is one of your most important resources. Subject specialists, rich collections, and a vast and varied array of services are at your doorstep.
Library Resources
Getting Help From a Librarian
How do you navigate the libraries? Check out the subject and topical guides, or contact any of the more than 40 subject specialists.
Need a consultation about your research project? No problem. You can set up a customized session with one of the librarians. Also check out this guide on the research process.
Just contact the specialist of your choice, or fill out a research consultation form. Librarians are available virtually or by phone, or you are welcome to just drop by the library.
Library Resources by Location
The University Libraries are home to general circulating collections as well as specialized areas dedicated to African Studies, transportation, music, art, and special collections. In the center of the Evanston campus is a collection of materials for the study of religion at the Styberg Library of the Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary.
Yet further north you’ll find the Seeley G. Mudd Library, the prime spot for the study of the sciences and engineering.
The Block is a hub for interdisciplinary research. You can search their collection, schedule study visits, and access digital resources and program archives. You are also welcome to reach out to Block Museum staff based on their areas of expertise as you develop your project, and participate in museum programming and events.
EVANSTON CAMPUS
University Library Subject Specialists
Research Guides by Subject Area
McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives
CHICAGO CAMPUS
Digital Resources for Research
Sage Research Methods Core Collection
A suite of bite-sized introductions to research concepts to help you learn about different methodologies through various media formats.
- Instructional Videos – See research in action and learn about data visualization through tutorials, video case studies, expert interviews, and practice data.
- Books about Research Methodology – Find information from quick definitions of methods to comprehensive explorations of concepts and methods.
- Research Podcasts from Scholars – Listen to top researchers in the social sciences to hear how they grapple with methodological issues.
- Project Planner – Find step-by-step guidance to complete your research project.
Gaining Research Skills with Sage Campus Course Clusters
A suite of mini courses to help you learn or develop your skills in select areas by completing full courses or individual sections of courses as desired.
- General Research Skills – Develop your critical thinking, research, and writing skills, your strategy for seeking information, and your confidence in fact-checking sources.
- Exploring Methodologies – Be introduced to different methodologies like text mining, ethnography, digital humanities, and more.
- Qualitative Skills – Gain skills in sampling, conducting interviews, analyzing qualitative data, and more.
- Quantitative Skills – Gain skills in cleaning messy data, working with R or Python, data visualization and more.
- Publishing Your Work – Learn about the publication process, choosing a journal, writing a journal article, and more.
Book Resources By Research Methodology
Research Process
- Booth, W. C. (2016). The craft of research. The University of Chicago Press.
- Devlin, A. S. (2018). The research experience: planning, conducting, and reporting research. Sage.
- Grix, J. (2019). The foundations of research. Red Globe Press.
- O’Leary, Z. (2017). The essential guide to doing your research project. SAGE Publications Ltd.
- Panke, D. (2018). Research design and method selection: making good choices in the social sciences. Sage.
- Tan, W. (2017). Research methods: a practical guide for students and researchers. World Scientific.
- Walliman, N. (2018). Research methods: the basics. Routledge, an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group.
- Wisker, G. (2019). The undergraduate research handbook. Red Globe Press.
Literature Reviews
- Booth, A. (2016). Systematic approaches to a successful literature review. Sage.
- Efron, S. E. (2019). Writing the literature review: a practical guide. The Guilford Press.
- Fink, A. (2020). Conducting research literature reviews: from the internet to paper. SAGE Publicaitons, Inc.
- Galvan, J. L. (2017). Writing literature reviews: a guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences. Routledge.
- Harris, D. J. (2020). Literature Review and Research Design: A Guide to Effective Research Practice. Routledge.
- Hart, C. (2018). Doing a literature review: releasing the research imagination. SAGE Publications.
- Hempel, S. (2020). Conducting your literature review. American Psychological Association.
Archival
The proposed project involves collecting primary sources held in archives, a Special Collections library, or other repository. Archival sources might include manuscripts, documents, records, objects, sound and audiovisual materials, etc. If a student proposes a trip to collect such sources, the student should address a clear plan of what will be collected from which archives, and should address availability and access (ie these sources are not available online, and the student has permission to access the archive).
- Gaillet, L. L. (2016). Primary research and writing: people, places, and spaces. Routledge.
- Gililand, A. J., McKemmish, S., & Lau, A. J. (2017). Research in the archival multiverse. Monash University Publishing.
- Moore, N. (2017). The archive project: archival research in the social sciences. Routledge.
- Ramsey, A. E. (2010). Working in the archives: practical research methods for rhetoric and composition. Southern Illinois University Press.
Creative Output
The proposed project has a creative output such playwriting, play production, documentary, music composition, poetry, creative writing, or other art. Just like all other proposals, the project centers on an answerable question, and the student must show the question and method associated with the research and generation of that project. The artist also must justify their work and make an argument for why this art is needed and/or how it will add to important conversations.
- Bauer, I. (2016). Screenwriting Fundamentals. Routledge.
- Collins, D. (2012). The act of musical composition studies in the creative process. Ashgate.
- Collins, H. (2019). Creative research: the theory and practice of research for the creative industries. Bloomsbury Visual Arts, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
- Gerard, P. (2017). The art of creative research: a field guide for writers. The University of Chicago Press.
- Koehler, A. (2017). Composition, creative writing studies, and the digital humanities. Bloomsbury Academic, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
- Leavy, P. (2015). Method meets art: arts-based research practice. The Guilford Press.
- Wiltshire, K. (2016). Writing for theatre: creative and critical approaches. Palgrave MacMillan.
Computational/Mathematical Modeling
The proposed project involves developing models to numerically study the behavior of system(s), often through computer simulation. Students should specify what modeling tool they will be using (i.e., an off-the-shelf product, a lab-specific codebase), what experience they have with it, and what resources they have when they get stuck with the tool (especially if the advisor is not a modeler). Models often involve iterations of improvements, so much like a Design/Build project, the proposal should clearly define parameters for a “successful” model with indication of how the student will assess if the model meets these minimum qualifications.
- Bala, B. K. (2017). System Dynamics: Modelling and Simulation. Springer Singapore.
- Berry, S., Lowndes, V., & Trovati, M. (2017). Guide to Computational Modelling for Decision Processes: Theory, Algorithms, Techniques and Applications. Springer International Publishing.
- Bungartz, H.-J. (2014). Modeling and Simulation: An Application-Oriented Introduction. Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
- Eck, C. (2017). Mathematical Modeling (1st ed. 2017. ed.). Springer International Publishing.
Design/Build
The proposed project’s output centers around a final product or tool. The student clearly defines parameters for a “successful” project with indication of how they will assess if the product meets these minimum qualifications.
- Andreasen, M. M. (2015). Conceptual Design: Interpretations, Mindset and Models. Springer International Publishing.
- Cohen, A. (2015). Prototype to Product. O’Reilly Media, Inc.
- Niedderer, K., Clune, S., & Ludden, G. (2018). Design for behaviour change: theories and practices of designing for change. Routledge.
- Pidaparti, R. M. (2018). Design engineering journey. Morgan & Claypool Publishers.
Fieldwork
The project involves collection of data outside of a library, laboratory, or traditional academic research setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines.
- Danelo, D. J. (2017). The field researcher’s handbook: a guide to the art and science of professional fieldwork. Georgetown University Press.
- DeWalt, K. M. (2011). Participant observation: a guide for fieldworkers. Rowman & Littlefield, Md.
- Orne, J. (2015). An invitation to qualitative fieldwork: a multilogical approach. Routledge.
- Pole, C. J. (2016). Doing fieldwork. SAGE.
Interviews
The proposed project will collect data or narratives through interview(s). The proposal should clearly define who will be interviewed, how these participants will be recruited, and/or proof of support from contacts. The proposal should include interview questions in an appendix, which allows the review committee to assess whether the questions being asked will ultimately allow the student to answer the research question. The proposal should articulate how the results from these interview(s) will be analyzed or interpreted.
- Barbour, R. S. (2018). Doing focus groups. Sage.
- Brinkmann, S. (2018). Doing interviews. SAGE Publications Ltd.
- Kvale, S. (2015). InterViews: learning the craft of qualitative research interviewing. Sage Publications.
- Magnusson, E. (2015). Doing interview-based qualitative research: a learner’s guide. Cambridge University Press.
- Stewart, C. J. (2014). Interviewing: principles and practices. McGraw-Hill Education.
Lab-Based
The project takes place in a lab or research group environment, though the methodology within the lab or research group vary widely by field. The project often fits within the larger goals/or project of the research group, but the proposal still has a clearly identified research question that the student is working independently to answer.
- Bozeman, B. (2017). The strength in numbers: the new science of team science. Princeton University Press.
- Friedland, A. J. (2018). Writing successful science proposals (Third edition. ed.). Yale University Press.
- Lobban, C. S. (2017). Writing undergraduate lab reports: a guide for students. Cambridge University Press.
Literary/Composition Analysis
The project studies, evaluates, and interprets literature or composition. The methods are likely influenced by theory within the field of study. In the proposal, the student has clearly defined which pieces will be studied and will justify why these pieces were selected. Context will be given that provides a framework for how the pieces will be analyzed or interpreted.
- Bennet, T. (2017). Writing and literature: composition as inquiry, learning, thinking, and communication. University of North Georgia Press.
- Brookbank, E. (2019). MLA guide to undergraduate research in literature. Modern Language Association of America.
- Burt, S. (2019). Don’t read poetry: a book about how to read poems. Basic Books.
- Culler, J. D. (2011). Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. OUP Oxford.
Qualitative Data Analysis
The project proposes to analyze data from non-numeric information such as interview transcripts, notes, video and audio recordings, images, and text documents. The proposal clearly defines how the student will examine and interpret patterns and themes in the data and how this methodology will help to answer the defined research question.
- Bhattacharya, K. (2017). Fundamentals of qualitative research: a practical guide. Routledge.
- Flick, U. (2018). An introduction to qualitative research. SAGE.
- Holliday, A. (2016). Doing & writing qualitative research. SAGE.
- Salmons, J. (2016). Doing qualitative research online. SAGE Publications Ltd.
- Tracy, S. J. (2020). Qualitative research methods: collecting evidence, crafting analysis, communicating impact. Wiley Blackwell.
- Yin, R. K. (2016). Qualitative research from start to finish. Guilford Press.
Survey
The proposed project will collect data through survey(s). The proposal should clearly defined who will be asked to complete the survey, how these participants will be recruited, and/or proof of support from contacts. The proposal should include the survey(s) in an appendix. The proposal should articulate how the results from these survey(s) will be analyzed.
- Czaja, R. (2014). Designing surveys: a guide to decisions and procedures. SAGE.
- De Vaus, D. A. (2014). Surveys in social research. Routledge.
- Fink, A. (2013). How to conduct surveys: a step-by-step guide. SAGE Publications.
- Rea, L. (2014). Designing and Conducting Survey Research: A Comprehensive Guide. Jossey-Bass.
Quantitative Data Analysis
The project proposes to analyze data from numeric sources. The proposal clearly defines variables to be compared and provides insight as to the kinds of statistical tests that will be used to evaluate the significance of the data.
- Creswell, J. W. (2018). Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. SAGE Publications, Inc.
- Haig, B. D. (2018). The philosophy of quantitative methods. Oxford University Press.
- Paarsch, H. J. (2015). A gentle introduction to effective computing in quantitative research: what every research assistant should know. The MIT Press.
- Wetcher-Hendricks, D. (2011). Analyzing quantitative data: an introduction for social researchers. Wiley.
Theory
The proposed project will use theoretical frameworks within their proposed area of research to explain, predict, and/or challenge and extend existing knowledge. The conceptual framework serves as a lens through which the student will evaluate the research project and research question(s); it will likely contain a set of assumptions and concepts that form the basis of this lens.
- There really aren’t books on theory in general, as the best resources for theory are generally subject-based. Therefore, it would hard to cover all subject areas without the list being gigantic.
- However, we encourage you to reach out to your subject librarian for books on the theoretical framework most relevant to your subject!