Anthropology - Fieldwork & Methodology, Anthropology - Reference, Social Science - Bibliography

Introduction to Library Research in Anthropology

Name: Introduction to Library Research in Anthropology
Author: John M. Weeks
ISBN: 9780813390031

by John M. Weeks

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Overview

This revised second edition serves not only as a self-instructional reference tool for logically and systematically accessing anthropological literature but also as a basic text for library instruction programs for undergraduate and graduate anthropology students.The first section outlines the historical development of the discipline, identifies the informational needs of anthropologists, and describes the structure and organization of libraries as sources of anthropological information. A variety of research strategies and methods for conducting library research are explored as well. The second section consists of nineteen chapters describing the various kinds of research tools available to the anthropologist. Included are descriptions of scope, arrangement, and content for hundreds of reference works, such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, directories, subject and regional bibliographies, guides to specialized libraries and archives, indexes and abstracts, Human Relations Area Files, and computerized databases. Electronic databases are identified throughout the volume, and a chapter is devoted to Internet resources.Appendixes summarize the Library of Congress classification scheme for anthropology, identify the major anthropology library collections in the United States and Canada, and describe the arrangement of Human Relations Area Files classification system.

About the Author, John M. Weeks

John M. Weeks is museum librarian at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

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Editorials

Library Journal

Weeks attempts to provide undergraduate students with the mechanics and resources needed to undertake research in anthropology. An updated revision of a work published in 1991, this edition carries a new chapter on the Internet and expands from 1,144 to 1,538 entries. The chapter on the Human Relations Area Files should have given prominence to the electronic version rather than the microfiche, and the chapter defining anthropology continues to cite 1988 student enrollment figures. The work is rife with problems. Electronic versions of print indexes are frequently omitted (Population Index and Monthly Catalog), later editions are missing (John Van Willigen's Anthropology in Use, Westview, 1991. rev. ed.), and important new titles are overlooked (The Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics, Pergamon, 1994). There are numerous errors in citations. The unannotated 36-page chapter on Internet resources provides no guidance on what is useful, and the list of electronic journals gives no indication as to whether they offer full text, selected articles, or tables of contents. While R.C. Westerman's Fieldwork in the Library (Professional Reading, LJ 1/95) may be faulted for its confusing organization, and Josephine Kibbee's Cultural Anthropology: A Guide to Reference and Information Sources (Libraries Unlimited, 1991) is smaller in scope, both of these works are consistently annotated and include a title index, qualities lacking in Weeks's volume. This work is uneven but might have uses in academic libraries serving graduate anthropology programs. Undergraduates will find it overwhelming.J. Christina Smith, Boston Univ. Lib.

Booknews

An introduction to the literature in anthropology, serving either as a self-instructional reference tool or as a basic text for library instruction programs for undergraduate and graduate anthropology students. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

This volume serves as a self-instructional reference tools for accessing anthropological literature and also as a basic text for library instruction programs for undergraduate and graduate anthropology students. The first section identifies anthropologists' informational needs and describes resources and strategies. The second section contains 19 chapters describing available research tools, including the scope, arrangement, and content of hundreds of reference works. Electronic databases are identified throughout and one chapter is devoted to Internet resources. Excellent appendices list the Library of Congress's classification scheme for the field, identify major collections, and describe the arrangement of the Human Relations Area Files classification system. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.