How to Research an Anthropology Paper
Once you have your paper topic, you may be unsure of where to find the best information. If you don’t have any class-texts related to the subject, or aren’t allowed to use them, here are a few good resources to help you find what you need.
Where to Find Sources
Once you have your paper topic, you may be unsure of where to find the best information. If you don’t have any class-texts related to the subject, or aren’t allowed to use them, here are a few good resources to help you find what you need.
Library
- Bailey/Howe is one of your most valuable resources for finding books about your topic, and you don’t even have to leave your dorm room to search it! Bailey/Howe’s Catalogue is really convenient and easy to use. And if you find something that BH doesn’t have, Inter-Library Loan is painfully easy (though make sure you give yourself plenty of time for the material to come in.)
- If you aren’t seeing exactly what you’re looking for in the catalogue, try looking at the call numbers that pop up and go to the actual shelves. You might find some surprisingly useful texts that didn’t show up in the catalogue.
- The library also has the benefit of having librarians. These faculty and staff members are paid to help you research! So if you don’t know where to start, or just want an extra boost, go talk to one!
- If books just aren’t your thing, the library’s website also has connections to many electronic resources. Howe Library’s Anthropology research guide (new tab) is very helpful., and they have a great page on anthropology.
Internet
- Journal databases like JSTOR and ANTHROSOURCE are your best bet for finding current, peer reviewed articles. Google Scholar is another great source to use.
- When searching for your topic, don’t start off too narrow—you will barely find anything and what you do find probably won’t help. Starting broadly and sorting through the articles while narrowing your search is a good way to find plenty of information and resources.
- You should NEVER cite Wikipedia as a source. However, if you know absolutely nothing about your topic, Wikipedia is a good place to start. You’ll get a brief overview (which you shouldn’t trust entirely) and you’ll be able to look at the sources cited in the entry to see where the author(s) got their information, which can lead you in a good direction.
Sources you might already have
- Any type of scholarly source you are using should have a bibliography of where they got their information. These references can lead you to good books and primary sources for your own paper.
What to Look for in a Source
- Sources must be scholarly, and articles must be peer reviewed. What that means is non-fiction books by reputable authors in the field and preferably published by academic presses, and journal articles that have been reviewed by other scholars in their field. Some of the main peer-reviewed journals in anthropology are American Anthropologist, Cultural Anthropology, Anthropology Quarterly, and Critical Anthropology. Most online databases either only look through peer-reviewed articles or have the option to.
- While this generally excludes newspaper articles, magazine stories, encyclopedias, and random websites on the internet, for some topics, newspaper articles could be extremely pertinent. For example, if you were trying to trace the growth of popularity of a certain musical group in the 1930s, looking for old show announcements in newspapers and reviews would be just the thing you need. In this instance, they are being used as primary sources.
- A recent source is generally the best. Anthropology is always updating itself as new information and more in-depth studies come to light, so that book from 1903 might not be relevant anymore—unless it contains primary sources. Just remember, “recent” can include books published decades ago. It depends on the field and the state of research on the topic.
- When in doubt, ask your professor!
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
Scholarly sources provide the backbone for your paper, and there are many types you have to choose from. They can be divided into two simple categories, though each category could theoretically be broken down even more. Primary sources are first-hand documents. They come from the person or group who experienced the event or topic in question for themselves. A secondary source comes from the person or group who didn’t experience the event/topic, but heard about it or talked about it. For instance, if you are researching the social stratification of the native people of the Andes region, accounts from the native people would be your primary sources or evidence. Accounts from the foreign explorers who spied on the native people would be secondary.
Primary sources (sometimes known as original sources, evidence, data, etc…)
- Interviews with subjects directly involved (recordings, transcriptions or videos)
- Field notes
- Historical documents (letters, diaries, contracts, etc…)
- Artifacts and archaeological evidence and excavation reports
Secondary sources
- Everything else
Keeping Track of Your Sources
- I recommend Endnote, Zotero or RefWorks for keeping your sources organized and for formatting your citations and bibliography. The Howe Library Information Management Tools (new tab) page describes the pros and cons of each, and everything you need to know about citation in general.