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Communication Studies

Your guide to research in communication studies at SSU: find books, news, scholarship, videos and images, and more

What are reference sources?

Reference sources provide a broad or general introduction to a topic, and often provide links or "pointers" (e.g., bibliographies, references, authors) to other information sources. They are a great place to begin exploring your research topic, and may help you convert a very broad topic into a more focused, more specific research question. Specific reference sources include dictionaries and encyclopedias.

Library Reference Databases

You will probably want to start by looking at reference sources for background information. These are things like encyclopedias and textbooks that will provide reliable information to help you learn about new topics. Most of these are online now and you may want to search through multiple sources to find the right information for your assignment.