MONT 199D-S12: A Faith That Does Justice (Crawford Sullivan)

About Databases

A database is a collection of information that is arranged and tagged for easy searching and retrieval. Think of a database like an online storage container: It stores different publications, journals, books, magazines, and newspapers and makes it possible for you to access them. The library subscribes to over 300 databases that are available for Holy Cross students to use. Visit our A-Z Databases list to see what is available.

General Databases

General databases include information and journals that cover many subjects and academic fields. These can be a good place to start if you’re not sure what subject your topic falls under, if your topic is interdisciplinary and falls under multiple subject areas, if you want to see perspectives from different fields about your topic, or if you simply want to find general information.

To find general databases, go to the A-Z Database List. In the dropdown menu labeled "Subjects," select "_General" and click "Search." You will see a list of general databases, with some highlighted as "Best Bets." Some general databases are listed below.

Subject Databases

Subject databases include journals and publications from a specific academic field. They may include a number of different publications, but they are all within the same academic area. These can be helpful if you want to look at one specific subject or field.

To find subject databases, go to the A-Z Database List. In the dropdown menu labeled "Subjects," select your subject area and click "Search." Some Social Sciences databases are listed below.

Choosing a Database

Think about what subject area(s) your topic falls under. Different academic field will have different perspectives and methods for conducting and presenting research. If you aren't sure what field is relevant to your topic or you want to see a range of subjects and perspectives, a general database is a good place to start. If you know you want to find research in one specific subject or field, such as education or psychology, a subject database will help you find more focused resources.

CrossSearch is a one-stop search tool that lets you search most of the informational resources available through the library, including:

• Books, ebooks, archival materials, media and music scores owned by the Holy Cross Libraries.
• Research databases like Academic Search Premier, JSTOR, ARTstor and ProQuest Central.
• E-journal collections like JSTOR and ScienceDirect.
• The Holy Cross digital repository CrossWorks.
• Open Access collections such as HaithiTrust Digital Library

As you can see, CrossSearch looks in many different places and for many different types of sources. In one search, you might see results for academic journal articles, books in the library’s collection, films, newspaper articles, and more. This can be a good place to start if you want to see a broad scope of the resources available on your topic. However, because CrossSearch includes so many types of resources, you might find you need to filter these results more than you would in a more specific database.

CrossSearch is best accessed through the library home page (https://www.holycross.edu/library).

Use the Library Catalog to find print books, print journals, and ebooks in the library's collection. Access the Library Catalog search through the library home page (https://www.holycross.edu/library). Above the search bar, select "Library Catalog." To use more advanced searching options, click on the "My Library Account" link below the search bar to go directly to the catalog, where you can search by keyword, title, subject, or call number. 

Books on the shelves are organized by call number. A call number is an address for a book that tells you where the book is located on the shelf. Call numbers identify different subject areas, so books with similar call numbers will cover similar subjects. This way, when you find a book on the shelf, you know the books around it are on similar topics.

When you look up a book in CrossSearch or the Library Catalog, you will see the call number listed with the book details.

The call number tells you where the book is on the shelf. To read the call number:

1. Location: This book is in Dinand Library.
2. Letters that begin the call number: In this example, the call number starts with BX. Books are sorted alphabetically by those two letters, so this book will come after books with BV and before books with C. 
3. Numbers after the letters and before the decimal point: 1795. These are shelved in number order, so this will be after books with BX 1600 and before books with BX 1800. 
4. Letter and numbers after the decimal point: .S62. These are shelved alphabetically, then numerically. This book will be after books with BX 1795 .S61 and before books with BX 1795 .S63. 
5. The next set of letters and numbers are shelved the same way, and not all books will have this second set of letters and numbers. The last part of the call number is the publication year, which is shelved in chronological order.

You can find a map of the Dinand stacks and more tools for reading call numbers in the document linked below.