General Sources for Political Science Research
Guides to Political Science Literature and Reference Sources
- Almanac of American Politics 2008
Michael Barone with Richard E. Cohen and Grant Ujifusa.
Call Number: REF JK1012.A44
- The Almanac contains profiles of every Senator, Representative and Governor, with brief discussions of the current political climate in every state and congressional district. Each profile includes selected interest group ratings, Census data, key votes, campaign expenditures, election results, and other details.
- Political Science: A Guide to Reference and Information Sources (1990)
Henry E. York
Call Number: REF JA71.Y75
- Somewhat dated but still useful guide to over 800 major reference resources in political science (bibliographies, indexes, dictionaries, handbooks, statistical sources, etc.), plus some of the more important databases, periodicals, organizations, and publishers in the field. U.S. government and politics is covered on pages 177-166. Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
- Political Science Resources (Department of Political Science, William Paterson University)
- Extensive directory of links to political science information resources compiled and maintained by the University's Political Science Faculty. Here you will find tools most relevant to the courses offered at the University and some of the best starting points for further exploration.
http://www.wpunj.edu/cohss/polisci/resource.htm
- Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources
- Well-organized, current directory of links to political science resources maintained by a faculty member at the University of Keele (UK).
http://www.psr.keele.ac.uk/
- Using Government Information Sources: Electronic and Print, 3rd ed. (2001)
Jean L. Sears and Marilyn K. Moody
Call Number: REF J83.S43
- Concentrating on U.S. government sources, this guide covers techniques for searching on subjects, the information produced by specific government agencies, several statistical sources, and approaches to common projects in political science research (e.g., compiling a legislative history, analyzing a budget). Includes bibliographical references and index.
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Dictionaries, Encyclopedias and Handbooks
- A Companion to Qualitative Research (2004)
Uwe Flick, Ernst von Kardorff, Ines Steinke, and Bryan Jenner
Call Number: REF H62.C66
- One-volume reference and guide covering theories and methods used for doing qualitative research, plus sections on the practice of qualitative research in various contexts. The essays are concise and up to date.
Translation of: Qualitative Forschung : ein Handbuch. Reinbek bei Hamburg : Rowohlt Taschenbuch, 2000.; Includes bibliographical references and index.
- Encyclopedia of Social Measurement (2005)
Kimberly Kempf Leonard
Call Number: REF H62.E627
- 356 articles in three volumes covering "the data, techniques, theories, designs, histories, and implications of assigning numerical values to social phenomena." An excellent resource for anyone preparing an empirical research study.
- Handbook of Data Analysis (2004)
Melissa A. Hardy, and Alan Bryman
Call Number: REF H62.H224
- Guide to the major methods of data analysis covers different approaches to data, the general linear model and its extensions, longitudinal models, some newer types of data modeling, and data analysis tools.
- International Encyclopedia of Public Policy and Administration (1998)
Jay M. Shafritz, editor in chief
Call Number: REF H97.I574
- Although this encyclopedia is international in scope, over half the entries are addressed specifically to U.S. politics and policy. Some 900 articles provide good overviews and discussions of major issues and selected bibliographies for further reading, making this an excellent starting point for developing research topics.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
- The Sage Encyclopedia of Social Science Research Methods (2004)
by Michael S. Lewis-Beck, Alan Bryman, and Tim Futing Liao
Call Number: REF H62.L456
- Approximately 1,000 entries in three volumes covering a wide variety of methodological concepts and applications commonly used in social science research.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
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Indexes/Databases for Locating Periodical Literature
- Academic Search Premier
- Full-text database contains periodical literature for a wide variety of subject areas. It is recommended you make use of the "Subjects" button for help in obtaining focused results. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO)
- A comprehensive online resource for theory, research, and teaching in international affairs, CIAO currently offers over 195,000 pages of working papers, policy briefs, books and book chapters, journal articles and abstracts, conference proceedings; original case studies of pivotal episodes and developments; course packs of ready-made selections for quick study of important concepts and developments; and coverage of current issues. Over 3,500 pages of new materials are added to CIAO each month. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Congressional Quarterly Library (CQ Researcher and CQ Weekly)
- Two publications providing detailed coverage of Congress and legislative issues. The CQ Weekly (also available in print, Call Number JK1.C15) offers timely coverage of the status of bills, votes and amendments, floor and committee activity, and backroom maneuvering. The CQ Researcher (also available in print, Call Number H35.E35) focuses on in-depth analysis about current and controversial issues; each edition concentrates on a single theme. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- JSTOR Political Science Journals
- The JSTOR electronic journal archive includes full-text backfiles for 45 major scholarly journals in political science, including:
- American Journal of Political Science, 1973-2006
- American Political Science Review, 1906-2004
- Journal of Politics, 1939-2004
- Legislative Studies Quarterly, 1976-2002
- Political Behavior, 1979-2004
- Political Research Quarterly, 1993-2006
- Political Science Quarterly, 1886-2002
- PS: Political Science and Politics, 1988-2003
- Public Opinion Quarterly, 1937-2002
The collection can be searched or browsed. From the openning screen, select "Political Science" from the list of disciplines before entering your search terms. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Lexis-Nexis Academic
- Full-text database contains current and archives files for U.S. and foreign newspapers, broadcast media transcripts, congressional news releases, transcripts of congressional hearings, presidential and departmental press briefings, legal news, federal and state statutes and case law, federal regulations, polling data from the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, and biographical sources. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- PAIS International (with PAIS Archive)
- The PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service) International database contains almost two million references to journal articles, books, government documents, statistical directories, grey literature, research reports, conference reports, publications of international agencies, microfiche, Internet material, and other materials covering the broad field of public affairs, pulic and social policy, and international relations. The database indexes materials from over 120 countries, including items published in French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, and it features sophisticated searching capabilities that support searching on 21 indexed fields. Our access includes the complete PAIS archive, spanning the period from 1915 to the present. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Social Science Index (part of the Wilson OmniFile database)
- Excellent bibliographic and full-text index covers every major social science discipline, including political science. From the opening screen, select "Social Science" from the Subject Area window near the bottom right corner before entering search terms. This database also includes the excellent Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature online, a great source for finding articles in popular magazines. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Wall Street Journal (via ProQuest)
- Full text of the Wall Street Journal, Eastern Edition, updated daily. [January 2, 1984-Present]. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
- Worldwide Political Science Abstracts provides citations, abstracts, and indexing of the international journal literature in political science and its complementary fields, including international relations, law, and public policy. Over 440,000 records cover articles from more than 1,400 periodical titles, with coverage from 1975 to the present. Please note that online access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
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Journals and Other Periodicals in Politics and Government
The Library provides access to a large number of electronic journals in sociology and related disciplines by subscription through several databases, and these can be browsed using the following links:
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Political Science Methodology and Statistics
- HyperStat Online Statistics Textbook
- HyperStat is the work of David Lane, a professor of psychology and statistics at Rice University. It is a complete introductory text in statistics, supplemented by many useful analysis tools and instructional demos that illustrate points in the text.
http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Political Methodology Link (University of North Texas)
- Well-selected link directory covers: logic and research design, statistical methodology, rational choice and game theory, software, and general-purpose data collections.
http://www.paulhensel.org/methods.html
- Resources for Methods in Evaluation and Social Research
- This page, hosted by the International Consortium for the Advancement of Academic Publication, lists free resources for methods in evaluation and social research. The focus is on "how-to" do evaluation research and the methods used: surveys, focus groups, sampling, interviews, and other methods. Most of these links are to resources that can be read over the web.
http://gsociology.icaap.org/methods/
- Social Research > Data Collections (from the Yahoo! Directory)
- A convenient collection of links to data collections and archives on the web. Many of the sources provide free access.
http://dir.yahoo.com/social_science/social_research/data_collections/
- Society for Political Methodology (APSA)
- The Society for Political Methodology section of the American Political Science Association provides access through this site to its own Working Paper archive, and there are other useful links relevant to methodological issues in political research.
http://polmeth.wustl.edu/
- Working Paper Sites of Political Science: Political Methodology and Data
- A collection of links to working papers in political research methods authored by university-affiliated researchers.
http://workingpapers.org/polmethods.htm
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Politics in General: Web Directories and Indexes
- Political Science Resources (Department of Political Science, William Paterson University)
- Extensive directory of links to political science information resources compiled and maintained by the University's Political Science Faculty. Here you will find tools most relevant to the courses offered at the University and some of the best starting points for further exploration.
http://www.wpunj.edu/cohss/polisci/resource.htm
- IGC Internet's Progressive Gateway
- IGC is the Institute for Global Communications, an organization founded "to actively promote change toward a healthy society, one which is founded on principals of social justice, broadly shared economic opportunity, a robust democratic process, and sustainable environmental practices." Among its many projects, IGC hosts PeaceNet, EcoNet, WomensNet, and AntiRacismNet, which serve as portals to political information resources.
http://www.igc.org/
- National Political Index
- The National Political Index "is a web site which provides an index of substantive political information for voters, political activists, political consultants, lobbyists, politicians, academicians, and media editors with a wide range of products, information, services, simulations, games, and polling in an interactive communications environment." Here you can find political news, government officials, candidates, parties, activist groups, legislation, and other information. The site focuses solely on U.S. politics.
http://www.politicalindex.com/
- Political Information.com
- Specialized search engine indexes over 4,000 selected web sites covering political and public policy issues. You can browse by subject categories or conduct searches through the full text of indexed sites. Useful for focused searching.
http://www.politicalinformation.com/
- Political Science Resources on the Web
- Exhaustive meta-index developed and maintained by the University of Michigan Documents Center.
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/polisci.html
- Politics Sites (from the Librarians' Internet Index)
- Over 400 web sites evaluated for content and quality, and stored in a well-organized directory that includes sub-topics. Every site listed here contains a brief description.
http://www.lii.org/pub/topic/politics
- Poly-cy: Internet Resources for Political Science
- This site is intended to provide a set of links useful for navigating the World Wide Web in the areas of Political Science, International Affairs, Public Policy, and Public Affairs. Created and maintained by Prof. Bob Duval, West Virginia University Department of Political Science.
http://www.polsci.wvu.edu/polycy/
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American Government and Politics
Elections and Voting Resources
- DemocracyNet (Congress.org)
- DemocracyNet (DNet) is an interactive website designed to improve the quality and quantity of voter information and create a more educated and involved electorate. A project of the League of Women Voters Education Fund, DNet encourages candidates to address a wider range of issues, and to address those in greater depth, than they might in other media. The site can be used to locate candidate information, follow debates, learn about ballot measures, and access voting information. Covers national, state, and local elections.
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/e4/?
- e-democracy's United States Elections Page
- E-Democracy.Org is a project of Minnesota E-Democracy, a non-partisan citizen-based organization whose mission is to improve participation in democracy in Minnesota through the use of information networks. It's Election pages are a non-profit, non-partisan starting place for elections information, announcements, news and discussions.
http://www.e-democracy.org/us/
- Election 2008 News from Yahoo! News
- Yahoo!'s Election 2008 page consolidates news from a variety of print and broadcast sources. The page includes a calendar of key election dates, video/audio resources, feature stories, opinion and editorial writings, and related sites.
http://news.yahoo.com/election/2008
- Federal Election Commission (FEC)
- The statistics available at the FEC's site fall into two general categories: (1) those dealing with voting and voter registration, and (2) those dealing with the financing of elections. Voter turnout and registration statistics are available back to 1960, although the earliest data is not very detailed. Campaign finance reports and data based on legally required disclosures and filings are available for federal elections to the 1996 campaigns. The fundraising activities of political parties and political action committees are also provided for 1995 to the present.
http://www.fec.gov/
- New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) Database
- The data contained in the ELEC database includes information as reported by candidates and committees. Currently contains voter contribution information for Primary and General elections (1985-2003). Can be searched by contributor name, candidate or committee name.
http://www.elec.state.nj.us/publicinformation.htm
- opensecrets.org
- opensecrets.org is a project of the the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C. that tracks money in politics, and its effect on elections and public policy. The site provides easy access to campaign finance data for every member of Congress. You can search by politician, donor, state, zip code, industry or interest group. All of the data is taken from public records (e.g., reports filed with the Federal Election Commission).
http://www.opensecrets.org/
- CQ MoneyLine
- Easy-to-use source of campaign funding information includes over a dozen databases you can use to search for the financial details about campaigns, candidates, donors, political action committees, parties, and foreign agents. Many of the links lead to official reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, although this site organizes paths to the information in a different way.
http://moneyline.cq.com/pml/home.do
- Project Vote Smart
- Nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded by the Center for National Independence in Politics (Corvallis, OR), Project Vote Smart's web site contains comprehensive and current information about election issues, campaigns, and candidates in both federal and state elections. Most candidate profiles include voting records, positions on selected issues, biographical details, campaign finance data, and performance ratings coompiled by major political interest groups. The information is compiled by a broad network of volunteers and student interns.
http://www.vote-smart.org
- WatchBlog: 2008 U.S. Election News & Opinion
- WatchBlog is a multiple-editor weblog broken up into three major political affiliations, each with its own blog: the Democrats, the Republicans and the Third Party (covering everything outside the two major parties). The postings are archived and organized into topic categories.
http://www.watchblog.com/
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Federal Government Resources: General
- GPO Access
- Through this web site, the U.S. Government Printing Office provides search tools and access to an enormous number of federal government publications commonly used for research and reference, including the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register, the Congressional Record, the U.S. Code, and many other titles from every branch of the government. Best for locating full-text documents produced during the last decade. Easy to browse and search.
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/
- USA.gov
- USA.gov is an easy-to-use search engine and directory designed to give you a centralized place to find information from all online U.S. Federal Government sources. A project of the President's Management Council, USA.gov is itself an official U.S. Government website.
http://www.usa.gov/
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U.S. Congress
- Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present
- Easy-to-use lookup tool allows you to browse or search for biographical information about every member of Congress since 1774. Most entries include years of service, party affiliation, a short account of the member's career, and a few bibliographic references.
http://bioguide.congress.gov/
- Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
- The CBO is a "nonpartisan agency that produces policy analyses, cost estimates of legislation, and budget and economic projections that serve as a basis for the Congress's decisions about spending and taxes." The site features publications in areas including disaster assistance (such as consequences of Hurricane Katrina on federal receipts and outlays), environment, health, housing, homeland security, transportation, and more. Also includes cost information about the timing of specific analyses, and links to related sites.
http://www.cbo.gov/
- Congressional Quarterly Library
- These two publications provide detailed coverage of Congress and the issues it deals with. The CQ Weekly offers timely coverage of the status of bills, votes and amendments, floor and committee activity, and backroom maneuvering. The CQ Researcher focuses on in-depth analysis about current and controversial issues; each edition concentrates on a single theme. Please note that access to this database is restricted to currently enrolled students, faculty and staff.
- Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports - Search Engine
- The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is the policy research arm of the U.S. Congress. With its $80 million budget and 800 employees, it issues about 3,000 briefs, reports, short issue papers and longer position papers per year. An arm of the Library of Congress, the Congressional Research Service is renowned for its non-partisanship and in-depth analysis, but it does not make its reports available to the public. However, it cannot prevent members of Congress from giving them out individually and some government agencies from posting reports they find relevant. Perhaps 1000 have become available on the web, and this search engine has been designed to assist you in locating them.
http://zfacts.com/p/576.html
- Congressional Votes Search: Search By Subject
- Hosted by C-SPAN, this site allows you to track Congressional votes on current and recent legislation. Using keywords, you can search the titles and descriptions of Congressional legislation in either the House or Senate back to the Second Session of the 104th Congress (1996). Searching by month, member, or vote number is also available.
http://capwiz.com/c-span/dbq/issuesdbq/votesearch.dbq
- THOMAS - U.S. Congress on the Internet
- A searchable, browseable database for the Federal legislature. Allows you to track the status of bills in both Houses of Congress. You can also find the full text of bills, public laws, committee reports, hearings transcripts, obtain Roll Call votes, and conduct other legislative research (e.g., search the Congressional Record). Most of the material in THOMAS is complete back to the 104th Congress (1995-1996), coninciding with the time the database was launched, although older material has been added to many sections back to the 93rd Congress (1973-1974) and earlier. The site also contains selected historical documents, data, and useful links.
http://thomas.loc.gov/
- U.S. Congressional Bibliographies
- This site provides comprehensive lists of Senate hearings, prints, and publications from 1983 to the present; lists of House committee meetings recorded in the Congressional Record's Daily Digest from 1985 to the present; and a statistical summaries record of each Senate committee that lists the number of hearings held by that committee, the number of hearings printed and unprinted by the Government Printing Office (GPO), and a numerical grade that represents how well each committee informed the nation of its activities through the publishing of transcripts from its hearings. Can be searched by keyword, committee name, or Senate number. Complied by John A. McGeachy of North Carolina State University.
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/congbibs/
- United States House of Represenatives
- The House's home page includes a current directory of members (with links to their web pages); links to Committee and Joint Committee web sites; a complete list of Roll Call Votes in the House from the Second Session of the 101st Congress (1990) to the present; a calendar and schedule of House activities; the full text of the House Rules; and links to other information.
http://www.house.gov/
- United States Senate
- The Senate's home page includes a current directory of members (with links to their web pages); the current members of all Senate Committees, Subcommittees, and Senate members of Joint Committees; a complete list of Roll Call Votes in the Senate from the 101st Congress (1989) to the present; a current calendar; the full text of the Senate Rules; and links to other information.
http://www.senate.gov/
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The President and the Executive Branch
- Budget of the United States Government
- This site includes the complete text of the President's budget documents, including the Economic Report of the President, the budget itself, and a variety of supporting documents, from the 1996 fiscal year to the current year.
http://origin.www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/
- Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States
- Originally published in print format, the Public Papers series is compiled by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration. The print series (Call Number J80.A283) includes volumes covering the administrations of Presidents Hoover, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton. Every volume issued since 1995, however, is now available online at this site, and more are promised.
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/pubpapers/index.html
- Welcome to the White House
- Official web site of the President includes biographical information, a directory of federal programs, press releases and briefings, transcripts of the President's weekly radio addresses, a database containing the full text of all Executive Orders issued by the current administration, selected federal statistics, and more.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/
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The Supreme Court and the Federal Judiciary
- Federal Judiciary Homepage
- Site hosted by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts provides a good overview of the federal court system. Includes electronic documents, directories, and press releases.
http://www.uscourts.gov/
- Supreme Court of the United States
- Official site of the U.S. Supreme Court includes the current Court schedule, court rules, recent opinions, and more.
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/
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U.S. Foreign Policy
- Central Intelligence Agency Electronic Reading Room
- The CIA established this site to provide the public with an overview of access to CIA information, including electronic access to previously released documents. Because of CIA's need to comply with the national security laws of the United States, some documents or parts of documents cannot be released to the public. However, a substantial amount of CIA information has been and/or can be released following review. The online collection includes over 2,000 documents created between 1940 and the present.
http://www.foia.cia.gov/
- DOSFAN Electronic Research Collection
- "The Electronic Research Collection (ERC) represents a partnership between the Government Printing Office through the Federal Depository Library Program, the U.S. Department of State and the Richard J. Daley Library, University of Illinois at Chicago. The site contains historical materials from 1993 to the present providing access to official U.S. foreign policy information and decision-making. Included are country and issue specific information on sociopolitical situations, economic trends, democracy, human rights, culture, development assistance, environment, terrorism, and more. Speeches, statements, and testimony by the President, Secretary of State, and other senior department officials are featured, along with many other publications that have traditionally been provided to depository libraries, including Dispatch, Background Notes, other official publications, and congressional reports."
http://dosfan.lib.uic.edu/ERC/index.html
- Electronic Briefing Books (National Security Archive)
- The National Security Archive was founded in 1985 by a group of journalists and scholars who had obtained documentation from the U.S. government under the Freedom of Information Act and sought a centralized repository for these materials. Over the years, the Archive has assembled a large collection of declassified documents on a wide variety of topics in U.S. foreign policy: a well-chosen sample is now available through these online "briefing books".
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/
- Foreign Relations of the United States
- Foreign Relations of the United States (or FRUS) is the title of a series of print volumes produced by the State Department's Office of the Historian. These volumes present the official documentary record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. The Library has most of the print volumes covering the years from 1932 to the most recent years available (Call Number JX233.A3). A growing number of recent volumes, however, are now available online at the State Department's site; and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries have made the full text of the volumes for 1900-01 and 1903-18 available for browsing and searching as well.
http://www.state.gov/www/about_state/history/frus.html and
http://libtext.library.wisc.edu/FRUS/
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State and Local Government Resources: General
- Assessing the New Federalism: State Database
- "Assessing the New Federalism is a multi-year Urban Institute research project to analyze the devolution of responsibility for social programs from the federal government to the states, focusing primarily on health care, income security, job training, and social services....This database includes information on the fifty states and the District of Columbia in areas including income security, health, child well-being, demographic, fiscal and political conditions, and social services."
http://newfederalism.urban.org/nfdb/
- National Governors' Association (NGA Online)
- Bipartisan national organization "of, by, and for" the nations' Governors. The NGA's mission "is to provide a forum for Governors to exchange views and experiences among themselves; assistance in solving state focused problems; information on state innovations and practices; and a bipartisan forum for Governors to establish, influence, and implement policy on national issues." Good resource for state-level political information.
http://www.nga.org/
- U.S. Conference of Mayors
- Official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more, founded in 1933. The site includes information about the Conference's ongoing work in defining urban issues and proposed ways of addressing them through politics and policies.
http://www.usmayors.org/
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Political Advocacy, Research, and Scholarly Organizations and Resources
- American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
- The ACLU functions as a non-profit, non-partisan "advocate of individual rights - litigating, legislating, and educating the public on a broad array of issues affecting individual freedom in the United States." Its mission is "to assure that the Bill of Rights -- amendments to the Constitution that guard against unwarranted governmental control -- are preserved for each new generation."
http://www.aclu.org/
- American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)
- The AFL-CIO is a federation of 68 American unions in the private and public sector, representing more than 13 million working women and men nationwide. The federation and its member unions are politically active, and the site includes information about current legislative and policy priorities.
http://www.aflcio.org/
- American Political Science Association
- The largest U.S. professional association for scholars and students of politics and the publisher of the American Political Science Review, the APSA claims more than 13,500 members in over 70 countries. This site includes useful information about the organization and its activities, including a directory of the electronic discussion lists it has organized.
http://www.apsanet.org/
- Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN)
- This grassroots organization active in antipoverty campaigns was founded in 1970 now has chapters across the country. Its major campaigns, organized around housing, jobs, and voter registration, "are designed to reach the unorganized majority of low and moderate-income people."
http://www.acorn.org/
- Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP)
- Research, education and public service center based at Rutgers University's Eagleton Institute of Politics. CAWP's mission is "to promote greater understanding and knowledge about women's participation in politics and government and to enhance women's influence and leadership in public life." Resources at the site include online fact sheets, publications, and news.
http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~cawp/
- Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF)
- Research and advocacy organization "committed to empowering women and winning equality through research, the sharing of information of value to feminists everywhere, and effective action." FMF's web site includes current news and information on the variety of national and global issues in which the organization is active.
http://www.feminist.org/
- Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
- Founded in 1970, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies is a national, nonprofit institution that conducts research on public policy issues of special concern to black Americans and other minorities. The site includes a discussion of "hot topics," statistical data, and the full text of selected reports produced since 1995.
http://www.jointcenter.org/
- Low Income Networking and Communications Project (LINC)
- This site, a project of the Welfare Law Center, functions as a gateway to numerous organizations working with low-income groups in a numer of anti-poverty initiatives. Housing, hunger, homelessness, and economic justice are some of the issues these organizations address.
http://www.lincproject.org/
- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
- Founded in 1909, the NAACP has been active in the major civil rights campaigns of the last century. Its "principal objective is to ensure the political, educational, social and economic equality of minority group citizens of United States and eliminate race prejudice."
http://www.naacp.org/
- National Organization for Women (NOW)
- Founded in 1966, NOW "is dedicated to making legal, political, social and economic change in our society" in order to achieve its goal, "which is to eliminate sexism and end all oppression." NOW's web site provides a good overview of the many political campaigns in which it is active. Also see NOW's Legal Defense and Education Fund for additional information.
http://www.now.org/
- Policy Library
- The aim of the non-profit, non-partisan Policy Library is to place public policy knowledge in the public domain. This site supports that goal by providing access to a database of online policy and research papers - which aims to be progressively comprehensive in its coverage - from British think tanks to think tanks in English speaking world, to policy papers from universities and government research, to foreign language research papers.
http://www.policylibrary.com/
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Political News and Links
- C-SPAN.org
- A project of the cable television industry, C-SPAN provides live gavel-to-gavel proceedings of the House of Representatives and the Senate, committee hearings, and other public affairs programming through its two channels. This site includes video and audio simulcasts, a schedule of upcoming programs, and archives of material dealing with current events and issues.
http://www.c-span.org
- New York Times on the Web
- Access to content beyond the opening screen requires registration, but it's free and the archives go back at least two years.
http://www.nytimes.com/
- Politics1
- Well-organized, non-partisan site offers good coverage of U.S. political news and other political information resources and links. Established in 1997 by Ron Gunzburger, a political journalist, businessman, lawyer, and campaign communications consultant.
http://www.politics1.com/
- Roll Call
- Online version of a print newspaper that has been covering Congressional since 1955. Along with Capitol Hill news, Roll Call features editorials, election news, commentary, cartoons and classifieds. The web edition is updated every Monday and Thursday.
http://www.rollcall.com
- Washingtonpost.com
- Web site of the Washington Post. Access to the site's content does not require registration.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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Political Parties
- Directory of U.S. Political Parties (from Politics1.com)
- Web-based
annotated directory includes links to the sites of the major U.S.
parties, third parties, and active parties that have yet to field or
endorse candidates for office.
http://www.politics1.com/parties.htm
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Public Opinion and Polling Data
- CNN.com: Election 2004 Poll Tracker
- Polling data conducted jointly by CNN, USA Today, and the Gallup organization. Coverage extends from September 2003 through October 2004.
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/special/polls/
- CNN.com: Election 2000 Presidential Polls
- Polling data conducted jointly by CNN, USA Today, and the Gallup organization. Updated as new data is collected, and previous polls are archived.
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2000/resources/polls.html
- Eagleton Poll Archive (Rutgers University)
- Electronic archive of polling data collected by the Center for Public Interest Polling/Eagleton Poll, one of the nation's first university-based statewide public opinion polls. Its key mission is to provide high-quality non-partisan information about public opinion in New Jersey and to assist governmental agencies, non-profit organizations, and academic entities with research services. The archive indexes over 120 sets of polling data available in SPSS portable format for polls conducted from 1971 to the present. Please note that you must email the Rutgers Data Librarian to request data files.
http://www.scc.rutgers.edu/eagleton/
- PollingReport.com
- Convenient web site provides access to polling data from a large number of polling organizations. Includes a substantial amount of data dealing with politics and elections.
http://www.pollingreport.com/
- Zogby International
- Zogby International is constantly searching, testing and measuring hypotheses and principles on polling and public opinion research. Working with a panel of psychologists, sociologists, computer experts, linguists, political scientists, economists,and mathematicians, we explore every nuance in language and test new methods in public opinion research. http://www.zogby.com
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Civil Liberties and Political Rights
Electronic Books Collection - The following reference e-books deal with various topics in civil liberties and political rights:
- Civil Liberties in America: A Reference Handbook, by Samuel Walker (2004)
- A concise, authoritative guide to civil liberties issues in American society, from freedom of speech and religious liberty to due process, equal protection, and privacy. Includes bibliographical references and index.
- Freedom of Association: Rights and Liberties under the Law, Robert J. Bresler (2004)
- From colonial times to the information age, an exhaustive survey of one of America's most contentious constitutional rights. Includes bibliographical references (p. 245-250) and index.
- Freedom of the Press: Rights and Liberties under the Law, by Nancy C. Cornwell (2004)
- An authoritative yet accessible analysis of the historical development and contemporary scope of press freedoms in America. Includes bibliographical references (p. 321-333) and index.
- Property Rights: Rights and Liberties under the Law, by Polly J. Price (2003)
- A survey of the evolution of property rights in the United States—from constitutional protections and due process to private property rights and government-takings doctrines. Includes bibliographical references (p. 305-309) and index.
- Right to Counsel and Privilege against Self-Incrimination: Rights and Liberties under the Law, by John B. Taylor (2004)
- An extensive analysis of two complementary rights of the accused, their interpretation by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the ongoing debate over their role in the criminal justice system. Includes bibliographical references and index.
- The Right to Vote: Rights and Liberties under the Law, by Donald Grier Stephenson, Jr. (2004)
- From its roots in early English rules to its practice today, this work covers the evolution, expansion, and ongoing debates regarding "the first liberty" in America. Includes bibliographical references (p. 407-433) and index.
- Unreasonable Searches and Seizures: Rights and Liberties under the Law, by Otis H. Stephens and Richard A. Glenn (2004)
- A historical look at Fourth Amendment jurisprudence, covering more than two centuries of search-and-seizure law, from landmark judicial decisions to enduring controversies.
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Comparative Government and Politics
- Political Database of the Americas
- Sponsored
by the Georgetown University Center for Latin American Studies, the
Political Database of the Americas contains information on the
institutional, constitutional and political structures of the region.
The main objective of the Database project is the development of a
comprehensive source of documentary and statistical political
information accessible throughout the Hemisphere and world via the
World Wide Web. Covers 35 countries in North and SOuth America.
http://www.georgetown.edu/pdba/
- Voter Turnout from 1945 to Date: A Global Report on Political Participation
- Published by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
in Sweden, this report "contains the most comprehensive global
collection of political participation statistics available. Regularly
updated voter turnout figures for national presidential and
parliamentary elections since 1945 are presented country by country,
using both the number of registered voters and voting age population as
indicators."
http://www.idea.int/Voter_turnout/index.html
- World Military Expenditures and Arms Transfers
- Online version of an annual publication produced by the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Arms Control.
The most recent (1998) edition contains statistical data, tables and
charts for 172 countries spanning the period from 1987 to 1997.
http://www.state.gov/www/global/arms/bureau_ac/wmeat98/wmeat98.html
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Human Rights
- Amnesty International
- Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide campaigning movement that works to promote all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards. In particular, AI campaigns to free all prisoners of conscience; ensure fair and prompt trials for political prisoners; abolish the death penalty, torture and other cruel treatment of prisoners; end political killings and "disappearances"; and oppose human rights abuses by opposition groups. Its web site includes a number of useful full-text publications, including reports on specific countries and human rights abuses.
http://www.amnesty.org/
- Human Rights Watch
- This U.S.-based human rights organization conducts fact-finding investigations into human rights abuses in all regions of the world, publishing several reports each year. Many of these reports are accessible through the site, along with news releases and other information.
http://www.hrw.org/
- Trial Lawyers for Public Justice
- This national, public interest law firm offers legal briefs and news on public interest issues, including consumer protection, children's rights, civil rights, disability rights, elder law, environmental preservation, health and safety, housing and homelessness, reproductive freedom, violence prevention, women's rights, and workers' rights and whistleblower protection. The site also features a free, online database of 2,300 contacts for public interest advocates in all 50 states, plus complete contact information for all legal aid, legal services, and poverty law offices in the U.S.
http://www.tlpj.org/
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Politics of the World's Regions
Middle East
- Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)
- Founded in 1998 to inform the debate over U.S. policy in the Middle East, the Washington, D.C.-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) provides timely translations of Arabic, Farsi, and Hebrew media, as well as original analysis of political, ideological, intellectual, social, cultural, and religious trends in the Middle East.
http://www.memri.org/
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