Sociology
Pollak Library Research Guide

Sociology

Sociology on the Internet:

There are many good quality web sites that contain information about Sociology and related issues.  However, the Internet does contain information which may not be true or may be biased.  When using information from the Internet you will need to act as the reviewer since there are no rules governing what can be published there.  This is especially true of many of the controversial topics which sociology students will be studying.


For guidelines on how to judge a web site:

  • The SocioWeb This is an example of a web site maintained by an individual.   Click on "overview" and see the statement at the bottom of page.  The author has a web design business.  The site is attractive and well put together but rather thin on substance.  This site is not recommended for research purposes.
  • A Sociological Tour Through Cyberspace   This site is and example of a quality mega-site.  It is maintained by the Sociology and Anthropology Department at Trinity University.  It maintains links links to other universities, sociological research, and  professional associations.  It also contains extensive subject links to varies research topics such as death and dying, marriage and the family, gender issues, demographics and much more.  There are also useful links to sociological theory, the research process, methods, and statistics and more.  This site contains its own search engine.

For some subject-guides to web sites that have been rated by various groups, see:

  • Subject Portals Be sure to scroll down the list to see the wide variety of subject indexes that are available from this link.

A few suggestions on citing electronic sources:

  • How to Cite Sources,  This is a web site that links together a number of methods of citation.
  • Standard style guides such as those published by MLA, APA or Turabian have updated editions that contain recommendations for electronic resources. Ask for these style guides at the Reference Desk.

 

Prepared by Cynthia Bruns An administrative page of the Paulina June & George Pollak Library at California State University, Fullerton.
(c) 2005 California State University, Fullerton. http://www.library.fullerton.edu All rights reserved.
Last Updated: 03 Apr 2008.