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Politics and International Relations: Databases

Introduction

Databases contain large amounts of data including (but not limited to) statistics, bibliographic information, images and abstracts.

Bibliographic databases are a useful tool for finding scholarly literature in your subject area. This includes (but is not limited to) journal articles, conference proceedings and books. They are very useful to consult when carrying out your own research because:

  • they provide powerful search functionality
  • have citation tools
  • have thesauri
  • their content is selected by experts in your subject

Bibliographic databases are helpful when you want to start exploring beyond your reading list or are researching a new topic.

On this page you will find recommended databases and guidance on how to search for and access databases.

Databases

Bodleian Libraries provide access to lots of databases. You will likely find you need to use several databases for a thorough search of your subject area. The tabs at the top of this section take you to key databases for politics and international relations and a link to browse all databases in politics and international relations.

You can also search for specific databases via SOLO. Note that some key texts may be available via a database but not individually listed on SOLO.

Help with databases

For those seeking advice on accessing databases, we recommend the following guides:

Below are key bibliographic databases applicable to those studying politics and international relation at Oxford. You will need to use your Oxford Single Sign On to access these.

For citation searching, i.e. finding out what articles have cited a particular article or book after publication, go to:

To browse a list of databases for politics and international relations, follow the link below which takes you through to Databases A-Z.

Recommend a database

If the Bodleian Libraries don't have a database you are looking for, you can make a recommendation by completing the form below (Oxford Single-Sign On required).

Definitions

Terms you may encounter in your research

Database:
A collection of structured and organised data that is stored, searched and accessed electronically.

Bibliographic database:
A searchable platform that contains descriptive records of articles, books, conference proceedings, audio-visual material, maps, newspapers, and more.

Abstracting service:
Used to refer to a bibliographic database, the service provides abstracts of publications.

Indexing service:
Used to refer to a bibliographic database, the service provides descriptors to help organise and navigate publications.

Full-text:
This means you can read the item in full from beginning to end, not just the abstract or summary.