A. Getting Started

1. Select Your Topic
2. Identify Terminology
3. Locate Background Information
4. Focus Your Topic and Form an Issue Question
5. Organize Your Topic into Concepts

B. Finding Research Materials

1. Finding Books Using the BYU Catalog
2. Journal and Newspaper Articles
3. Internet Resources
4. Additional Resources
5. Evaluate/Select/Cite Resources
6. Prepare Your Paper

[If you are not affiliated with BYU, you may not have full access to some of the electronic
resources discussed.]

A. Getting Started:

1. Select Your Topic

Select a broad topic of interest to you. You will refine and narrow your topic as you go. The following lists will assist you in deciding on a beginning broad topic. These lists are available on the Subject Research Guides page.

• Library Research Guides - Broad subject categories, each with a step by step guide created for that subject.
• Background Study Guides - Each guide includes a tailored four-page worksheet using the library-research strategy.


2. Identify Terminology

It is essential to use the proper terms for your subject, especially as you search electronic resources. Begin a list of terminology which is used in the literature for your topic, adding to it as you go along. There are several good sources to look up terminology.

• Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) (Located at all Reference Desks).
• Thesausus of Hispanic American Periodical Index (Level 1 Social Science Ref AI 3 .H57x 1975).
• Thesaurus of ERIC Descriptors (Level 1 Social Science Reference, or the ERIC database).


3. Locate Background Information

Do a brief background search using encyclopedias, general and specialized, and other reference sources to gain a basic understanding of your topic. Look for relevant terminology, how a subject is subdivided, and any useful bibliographies--names of important works/scholars in the field. Names that repeatedly appear in your articles are most likely authorities. Paying attention to their ideas will be very helpful. As you read, be alert to questions and issues being discussed and how you might begin to narrow your topic.

The following are some of the good sources for background information about Hispanic American Studies:.


• Mexican-Americans in Comparative Perspective (E184 .M5 M514 1985).
• An Outline History of Spanish American Literature(PQ7081 .I5).
• Dictionary of Mexican American History (E184 .M5 M453).
• Bibliography of Mexican American History (His. Ref. E184 .M5 X72)
• Borderlands Sourcebook (His. Ref. F786 .X1 B67)
• Chicano Literature: a Reference Guide (PS153 .M4 C46)
• Chicano Art History (N6538 .M4 X87 1984)


Other Specialized Sources will be located very near these. Ask at the reference desks for prepared local bibliographies.

4. Focus the Topic and Form an Issue Question

With background gleaned from the above reference sources, you should have an awareness of the various sub-divisions of your topic, and the issues of your topic that are being discussed and researched. You are now prepared to narrow the scope of your research and write an "issue question" which you can research.
For example: "How does Orlando Romero use nature in his works?"




5. Organize Topic into Concepts

Since many research resources are computerized, prepare to do an electronic search by, first, underlining the main or key words in your issue question.
Example: "How does Orlando Romero use nature in his works?"

Using the following chart, place the keywords in separate concept boxes. Add additional synonymous terms from your terminology list within each concept box.



concept 1	andConcept 2	andConcept 3
nature or landscape	novels or fiction or literature	Orlando Romero




How to phrase a "keyword" search:

Use the Boolean operator or between similar concepts. Use and to link different concepts, (see above).

Some root words can be truncated with a symbol ($ in the BYU Catalog, or * in most periodical databases) so that all endings of a root word can be searched at once. For example, "nature", above, could be truncated: "natur$" which would result in finding both "nature" and "natural."

For more specific search directions, watch for the "tips" or "helps" buttons in each electronic database.

B. Finding Research Materials:

1. Finding Books Using the BYU Library Catalog.To Perform a Basic Search
1. Enter the subject or author in the Search Box.
• If desired, select one library to limit your search by using the pull-down box labeled library.
• Enter author?s last name first (omitting puncuation): Romero Orlando
• Enter titles, omit the la, el, or los if it is the first word: for Los Vendidos enter Vendidos
• Enter subjects without dashes: American literature Mexican American authors (NOT American literature--mexican American authors)
2. Select the search type desired: Keyword or Alphabetical
• Use Keyword to find records containing the word(s) entered.
• Use Alphabetical to get an alphabetical list of records beginning with the first word entered.
3. Select one of the seven light blue buttons indicating the category or field(s) avaiable to search. (Keyword Anywhere, Author, Title, Periodical Title, Series Title, Subject, Genre/Form)
To Perform an Advanced Search
1. Enter your keyword search in the search box(es). You can:
• Truncate keywords by adding a $ to the end of root words (for multiple character truncation) or a ? (for single character wildcard).
• Link words with Boolean Operators (AND,OR, XOR or NOT)
• Link words with Positional Operators (SAME, WITH, ADJ, NEAR) SAME is the default between words.
2. Select keyword anywhere, author, title, periodical title, series title, subject or genre/form from the left pull-down box.
3. Select AND, OR, XOR, or NOT from the right pull-down box.
4. Click on Search Catalog to execute the search.
5. To limit your search, scroll down and select from the pull-down menus.
To Perform a Call No. Search
1. Type in the Call Number in the search box.
2. Limit your search, if desired, by library, location, shelving scheme.
3. Click on Browse Shelves to execute the search.


2. Journal and Newspaper Articles

The researcher uses articles published in current periodicals (magazines/journals) to get the most current research. A variety of periodical indexes (databases) are available on BYLINE by selecting the "Articles Indexes" tab. Note the major subject disciplines, then select the specific discipline desired.
If you have any questions, please check at the reference desk for assistance. The following periodical indexes are recommended for Hispanic American Studies and are available on BYLINE on the Hispanic-American page.

• Hispanic American Periodicals Index (HAPI) Indexes 500 periodicals from and about Latin America. Coverage from 1970 to the present. Available on-line and in paper copy.
• Handbook of Latin American Studies Indexes books, book chapters, articles and conference reports from and about Latin America. Coverage from 1935 to the present. Available on-line and in paper copy.
• MLA International Bibliography (ProQuest) Indexes books, book chapters, articles and conference reports on literature and languages in general. Coverage from 1963 to the present. Available on-line and in paper copy.
• Chicano Database (EBSCO) Indexes periodical articles about the Latino experience in the United States. Coverage is from 1967 to the present. Available on-line and in paper copy.
• Linguistics/Language Behavior Abstracts -- LLBA (ProQuest)Indexes and abstracts from 2,000 U.S. and foreign periodicals in language use, linguistics, and related disciplines. Coverage from 1973 to present. Available on-line and in print form.


There are also indexes listed under the "General & Multidisciplinary" category which may be helpful. These two, "ProQuest" and "EBSCO," have the advantage of having many articles available in full text.



3. Internet Resources

If Internet resources are needed/allowed, first use those recommended by the subject librarian under "Selected Web Sources".

One such web site for Latin America is UT-LANIC operated by the University of Texas Institute of Latin American Studies.

You may also wish to use one of the many Search engines listed under " Search the Web" on the BYLINE menu. Go directly to the home page of Alta Vista or Yahoo.

Remember to watch the screens for search "tips" or "helps" or "Advanced Search" buttons which will use many of the Boolean concepts discussed. Sometimes thousands of hits will be found, but remember to use caution, as most will not be reliable or scholarly. As you evaluate Internet resources, you may find clues in the URL (address) which can alert you to the type of agency responsible for that site thus helping you assess its credibility.

.edu or .gov (educational or government) are usually more factual, while .org or .com (organization or commercial) usually express more of an opinion or try to persuade the reader.

4. Additional Resources

There may be additional resources which could be used in your research.
1. Bibliographies: When you find good material, pay attention to the bibliographic references listed in that item.
2. Interlibrary Loan:If our library does not have the title, you can order it on Interlibrary Loan on Level 3. It will average 10 days but could take 3 weeks. The cost to receive articles is $.10/page and books are sent free of charge.


5. Evaluate/Select/Cite Resources

Use the following criteria to evaluate your resources:
• Reliability: Is the information scholarly and accurate? What clues are present to help you judge accuracy--footnotes, bibliography, credits, quotations?
• Credibility: What are the author's qualifications? Is he/she affiliated with a university or other scholarly institute?
• Perspective: Is the author objective, biased, or trying to sway the reader?
• Timeliness: How recently was the information published?


6. Prepare Your Paper

Cite resources using the writing style manual recommended by your instructor. The main style manuals can be found at the General Reference Desk or on the "ereference Collection" page:
• Chicago Format
• MLA Format
• APA
You are now ready to write your paper.