ANT 112 - Non-Western Cultures - West Campus: Getting Started

Balinese dancer, Bali, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, Asia. [Photography]. Retrieved from Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest. 

Need quick information on an ethnic group or culture?

Try: eHRAF: World Cultures: By Country

1. Search for your country.   Example: Guatemala
2. Choose an ethnic group.  Example: Garifuna
3. Click its Culture Summary
4. Review the information
5. Copy/paste any relevant search terms into MegaSearch or another journal/database search. Don't forget to keep track of where you find information so you can properly cite your sources.

The library offers a few options for searching our books, ebooks, journals, and other materials.

All our search options can be found on the library website. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• MegaSearch is best for when you want to browse what the college has available, or find journal articles. 
• Books & More is great if you are trying to locate a specific book or find books by a particular author. Use the drop-down menu to select your search type (by author, by title, etc.)
• Articles & Databases is ideal for finding scholarly articles and reports instead of books. 
• Encyclopedias are best for getting general information. For most academic assignments you should cite scholarly books, book chapters, or journal articles. 

Before beginning your research, create a list of 3-5 keywords or search terms. These are words are phrases related to your project.

Keywords represent the main concepts or concerns of your research. For example, if you are researching language and national identity some keywords might be:

• Balinese culture
• Sambia ritual
• Maori traditions

Keywords can be combined using "AND" to get more specific results:

• ethnic identity AND language - searching with this phrase will return results only if they include both keywords.

When you find a book or article which is relevant to your research, make a note of the words in the title or the keywords listed in the catalog record. Try these new terms to find additional materials.