Political Science Research Guide: Get started

About this guide

This guide describes the Library's resources and services relevant to the study and research done by the Political Science Department, University of Waterloo.

Graphic by Marian Davies

Omni, the Library's catalogue

Search in Omni, the Library's catalogue. You will find books, chapters in books, articles, and more. Sign in and request from the options available.

Top three search strategies
This infographic shows you how "quotation marks" and wild card (?) and truncation (*) symbols can make a big difference in the results you retrieve.

Handbooks, encyclopedias, dictionaries

Oxford Handbooks Online:
Political Science collection
Search across 100 works relating to areas of political science.
Cambridge History of Twentieth-Century Political Thought, 2003
Oxford Handbook of Canadian Politics, 2010
Oxford Handbook of International Relations, 2008
Palgrave Handbook of Canada in International Affairs, 2021
Routledge Dictionary of Politics, 2004

Scholarly articles: top databases

Politics Collection (ProQuest)
Provides abstracts, indexing and full text coverage of scholarly journal articles, country reports, dissertations, think-tank reports, working papers, and government documents.
Coverage: 1919 - present
Comprises 4 databases: Political Science Collection (1985 - present), Worldwide Political Science (1975 - present), Policy File Index (1990 - present) , and PAIS International (1919 - present).
Scopus
Peer-reviewed literature from scientific journals, books and conference proceedings, covering the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities.
Coverage: 1966 - present
ABI/INFORM
Articles on business and management from U.S. and international journals and trade magazines, including company histories, competitive intelligence, and product development.
Coverage: 1971 - present
Includes scholarly journals, trade magazines, working papers, market research, and company profiles.
CBCA (Canadian Business & Current Affairs)
Full text of journal, magazine, and newspaper articles relating to business, culture, current events, education, language, agriculture, history, and politics in Canada.
Coverage: 1982 - present

Country & international organization information

OECD iLibrary
Full text documents and statistical sets from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Coverage: 1998 - present