Tacoma Community College Library: ENGL 101: Calkins, J. (Fall 2024): Finding references sources

Reference databases

Why use reference sources?

Reference sources can give you a background information and a general overview of your topic and can point you to more specific research. They can also help you identify relevant names, places, ideas, and dates to use as search terms. In addition, they can help you to brainstorm ideas for narrowing a very broad topic to a point of interest.

Try searching the following subject encyclopedia database:

Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
Digitized reference works, covering many disciplines. Very useful for background information on a topic. Search by keyword and use no more than one or two terms (e.g., moral sentiments or Adam Smith).

Search for reference articles in Gale eBooks library database

Search tips:

In the search box at the top, start by typing in keywords (e.g., "Adam Smith," like in the sample below). For keywords that are a phrase, then you can also put those words in quotation marks. This keeps those words together in your search results, and leads to more relevant results.
Click on the title of the article to read the full article -- and get extra tools to help you email and cite the article!
Take note of the title of the encyclopedia or reference book -- this will give you clues about the subject matter or context
Take note of the publication date and page count.
Also pay attention to different ways you can filter, or narrow down, your results.