Latin American Studies Research Guide
Choose a topic that is interesting to you and which will work within your assignment's parameters. Usually your research goal is to locate published scholarship (books and journal articles) to read on your topic.
Prof. Rolf Swensen and Prof. Manuel Sanudo
Bibliographer for Latin American Studies Guide
Imagine that your professor asked you to write a paper based on your search of published literature. He/she asked you to consult different information sources including journal/magazine/newspaper articles, books, government documents, as well as Internet resources.
First, select a topic that is of interest to you. If in doubt, talk to your instructor regarding a chosen topic. You might want to seek help from reference librarians who are knowledgeable about search strategies necessary for locating needed information.
Books
First, read a good summary of a Latin American Studies topic in a Latin American Studies encyclopedia, like those listed in the Books section. Second, once you know the basics on your topic, search for more published scholarship, such as books in CUNY+ or other catalogs.
Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
- Encyclopedia of Latin American literature (Ref. PQ7081 .A1 E56 1997)
Includes entries on writers, works and topics relating to the literature of Latin America, in addition to survey articles on all of the continent's individual countries. - HLAS: Handbook of Latin American studies
Contains bibliographies on Latin America consisting of works selected and annotated by scholars. This multidisciplinary work alternates annually between the social sciences and the humanities. Each year more than 130 academics from around the world choose over 5,000 works for inclusion in the Handbook. - Country Studies
Prepared by the federal government these works provide a major analysis of each country’s history, politics, economics, and culture from the perspective of people who live there. - Enciclopedia de Puerto Rico/Encyclopedia of Puerto Rico
Authoritative information is provided on this site regarding all aspects of Puerto Rico, including the experience and achievements of Puerto Ricans on the island and elsewhere
Find Books
- CUNY+ Catalog
- Search for books and other materials at the Queens College Libraries, as well as other CUNY libraries.
- Other Library Catalogs
- Search the library catalogs of regional libraries such as the Queens Library, Brooklyn Public Library, New York University, Columbia University, etc.
- WorldCat
- Search for books in the national catalog for the United States and Canada. This database includes holdings from libraries in other parts of the world, primarily European or English-speaking.
Articles (Search Databases)
A journal article is written by a scholar or an expert, and provides a detailed analysis of a topic. It is written in the specialized language of a scholarly discipline (such as Sociology). It documents the resources the writer used by providing bibliographic citations such as footnotes, endnotes, and bibliography so a reader can check or repeat the research the scholar has completed. A scholarly journal is edited by scholars, and any article published in the journal has usually been approved by the author's peers or by referees (other scholars expert in the subject who serve as editors or readers and critique the article before it is accepted for publication). This is why most scholarly journals are referred to as a Peer-Reviewed or Refereed journals. Use the following databases to search for journal articles on a topic. You can use other Databases depending what topic you are researching. Here is the List of Databases.
- America History and Life
- Includes Latin American Studies as part of American history studies from 1964 to date.
- ATLA Religion Database
- Complete coverage of journals, with some linked full text.
- Ethnic Newswatch
- A full-text database for American ethnic newspapers, magazines, and journals in English and Spanish.
- Hispanic-American Periodicals Index (HAPI)
- Authoritative, worldwide source for information about Central and South America, Mexico, Brazil, the Caribbean basin, the United States-Mexico border region, and Hispanics/Latinos in the United States.
- Historical Abstracts
- Includes Latin American Studies as part of World History studies from 1954 to date.
Journals
- The Americas; a quarterly review of inter-American cultural history
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- from 2000 to 2010 in Project MUSE - Premium Collection
- from 1944 to 2007 in JSTOR Arts and Sciences II Collection
- Cuadernos Hispanoamericanos
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- from 1948 to 2009 at call number AP63 .C6697
- Journal of Latin American Studies
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- from 1969 to 2004 in JSTOR Arts and Sciences II Collection
- from 1997 to present in Cambridge Journals Online
- from 02/01/2001 to 1 year ago in ABI/INFORM Global and ProQuest Research Library
- Hispanic American Historical Review
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- from 1918 to 1999 in JSTOR Arts and Sciences II Collection
- from 02/01/1997 to 1 year ago in Academic Search Complete
- from 11/01/1997 to 02/01/2000 in ProQuest Research Library
- from 02/01/2000 to present in Duke University Press
- from 02/01/2000 to 11/30/2004 in Project MUSE - Premium Collection
- Hispanic Review
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- from 1933 to 2006 in JSTOR Arts and Sciences III Collection
- from 01/01/1990 to present in Academic Search Complete , MAS Ultra - School Edition and MasterFILE Premier
- from 01/01/1994 to 10/01/2008 in ProQuest Research Library
- from 01/01/1995 to 1 year ago in Art Full Text and Humanities Full Text
- from Winter 2005 to present in Project MUSE - Premium Collection
- from 01/01/2007 to present in Literature Resource Center
ASSOCIATIONS
Reports, studies, and data are sometimes available from the major scholarly organizations for the study of Latin America.
RESEARCH INSTITUTES
Reports or studies written by research institutes or non-profit think-tanks can also be useful.
WEB GATEWAYS
Continue your search for reports, studies, data, statistics, and information by browsing these Latin America Studies web gateways.
