POL 446: International Relations in East Asia: Library Research Guide

Introduction

This research guide is intended to help you get started with your POL 446: International Relations in East Asia course assignment research.

If you need help, please contact Jenna Walsh, Indigenous Initiatives Librarian & Liaison for Archaeology, First Nations Studies and Political Science at 778.782.9378 or jmwalsh@sfu.ca or Ask a librarian.

Getting Started

• For a step-by-step guide to researching your topic, see Start Your Research Here
• For one-on-one help with writing your paper, contact the Student Learning Commons

Background Information

Do you need some basic definitions or background information?  Try these subject-related resources:

• Encyclopedia of Political Science
• Security Handbook 2008: Emerging Powers in East Asia. Available in print: UA 832.5 S438 2008
• The Routledge Handbook of Asian Security Studies. Available in print: JZ 6009 A75 R68 2010   

Books and Reports

Search the Library Catalogue to find print and electronic books, journals and reports on your topic.

Try linking to the subject headings below to find useful print and online books and reports on your topic.

• East Asia -- Politics and government
• Japan -- Politics and government -- 1945-
• China -- Politics and government
• Geopolitics -- East Asia
• National security -- Asia
• Security, International -- Pacific Area
• East Asia -- Strategic asects
• East Asia -- Foreign relations
• Pacific Area -- Foreign relations
• Regionalism -- East Asia
• United States -- Relations -- Japan
• United States -- Relations -- Japan

Journal Article Indexes

See Databases in Political Science for a complete list of subject-related journal article databases online.  Some recommended databases for course-related research topics include:

• Bibliography of Asian Studies
  Humanities and social sciences information on East, Southeast and South Asia.

• Columbia International Affairs Online
  Provides theory and research in international affairs. It publishes a wide range of scholarship from 1991 onward that includes working papers from university research institutes, occasional papers series from NGOs, foundation-funded research projects, proceedings from conferences, books, journals and policy briefs. 
   
• Digital National Security Archive
  The Digital National Security Archive contains a comprehensive set of declassified government documents central to U.S. foreign and military policy since 1945.

• International Political Science Abstracts
  Covers political science articles published in scholarly journals and yearbooks worldwide.

• JSTOR
  Searchable, archival collection of core scholarly arts, humanities and social sciences journals.

• PAIS International
  Covers public and social policy literature of business, economics, finance, law, international relations, public administration, government, political science and other social sciences.

• Political Science Complete
  Covers political theory, comparative politics, law and legislation and non-governmental organizations.

News Resources

• Economist Intelligence Unit
  News and reports on the latest business, political & economic conditions in most parts of the world.

• Keesings Record of World Events
  A monthly digest of worldwide political and economic affairs covering the period from 1931 to the present.

• LexisNexis
  International news coverage, business news, legal cases and law reports.

• PressDisplay
  Provides online access to current newspapers from around the world in full-color, full-page format

• World News Connection
  News service from US Federal Broadcast Information Service.

Facts and Data

• Europa World
  Provides information on a variety of international organizations as well as highlights detailed information on every country in the world.

• OECD
  OECD iLibrary provides electronic access to books, periodicals and statistics published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

• undata
  Provides selected series from 30 specialized international data sources for all available countries and areas.

• World Competitiveness Yearbook
  Provides annual statistics on competitiveness of nations. Ranks countries based on economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure.

Websites

• Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS)
• Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
• National Bureau of Asian Research
• Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP)
• United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

Writing and Citing

Use the SFU Department of Political Science Guidelines for Writing Essays and Research Papers and the SFU Student Learning Commons Drafting your Paper to guide you as you write your research paper.

You may also want to peruse the following books:

• The Political Science Student Writer's Manual. Available in print: JA 86 S39 1998
• Social Sciences Research: Research, Writing and Presentation Strategies for Students. Available in print: H 62 S736 2008
• Academic Writing: An Introduction. Available in print: PE 1408 G53 2009

The Student Learning Commons offers students a wide range of academic writing, learning, and study strategies services including free one-on-one consultations and workshops.

You need to correctly cite all of the books, journal articles and websites that you used in your research.  Start with the SFU Library's Writing & Style Guide.  A couple of other guides that you may want to look at are the Citing Sources (Duke University Libraries) and Diana Hacker's Research and Documentation page.

Citing your sources and creating the reference list is time consuming.  Take notes throughout your research and make sure to mark the page number(s) of passages you plan to paraphrase or directly quote in your research paper.

Consider using a citation management tool called RefWorks to organize your references and automatically generate a bibliography from your references.  See the SFU RefWorks Quick Guide to help you get started.

Learning how to properly credit others when you use their ideas is a difficult, but important, part of research.  Start with the SFU Library's interactive tutorial Understanding and Avoiding Plagiarism to test yourself and to learn more about plagiarism.  Also read the SFU Library's Plagiarism Guide for further discussion of this critical topic and for links to other plagiarism guides.