Collins Memorial Library: SSI1-155: Are Prisons Necessary?: Building Context

What's a Tertiary Source?

Tertiary sources are excellent starting points! They consist of information synthesized from primary and secondary sources. Examples include:

Almanacs
Chronologies
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias
Directories
Fact books
Guidebooks
Indexes, abstracts, bibliographies used to locate primary and secondary sources
Manuals
Textbooks

These resources give you succinct overviews of your topic, explain scholarly arguments, point out interesting questions, and refer you to especially key sources.

Getting Started with Subject Encyclopedias

Subject encyclopedias, handbooks and overviews are scholarly, tertiary works written by experts on a variety of topics. An hour spent with one or more subject encyclopedias early on in the research process will save you hours of wasted time! The background information provides a good starting point as you begin the research process. Articles in subject encyclopedias are written by scholars who have deep specialization in the topic and the articles themselves go through a stringent editing process. Here's what subject encyclopedias provide:

a broad overview of a topic that is more in-depth than in general encyclopedias
Discussion of how scholars have approached, explored, and debated the topic over time (historiography)
words, phrases, names, dates, and events that can be used as keywords when searching a database
bibliographies in articles to find other sources (both primary and secondary); typically, these bibliographies point to just a few key sources, rather than overwhelming you with a comprehensive list.
cross-references to find related topics
- Look for "see also" at the beginning or end of the article
- Some encyclopedias highlight words in the text of the article to indicate that there is a separate entry on that topic

In Collins Library, the print reference collection is located on the first floor, and most of the online reference collection is available in one of the database collections listed on the right. Use Primo to identify subject encyclopedias in either format; or ask a librarian for recommendations.

Individual Subject Encyclopedias (a selection)

American Prisons and Jails: An Encyclopedia of Controversies and Trends by Vidisha Barua Worley (Editor); Robert M. Worley (Editor)
Call Number: Click title for online access. (Limit of 1 simultaneous user)
Publication Date: 2019
This encyclopedia provides a rigorous and comprehensive summary of correctional systems and practices and their evolution throughout US history.

CQ Researcher
Full-text reports that cover background, main issues, pro/con, next steps, and further reading. Use the Issue Tracker to find related CQ reports and track an issue over time.

African Americans and Criminal Justice: an Encyclopedia by Delores D. Jones-Brown (Editor); Beverly D. Frazier (Editor); Marvie Brooks (Editor)
Call Number: Click title for online access.
Publication Date: 2014
African Americans and Criminal Justice: An Encyclopedia comprises descriptive essays documenting the ways in which people of African descent have been victimized by oppressive laws enacted by local, state, and federal authorities in the United States. The entries also describe how Blacks became disproportionately represented in national crime statistics, largely through their efforts to resist legalized oppression in early American history.
Encyclopedia of Prisons and Correctional Facilities by Mary F. Bosworth (Editor)
Call Number: Click title for online access.
Publication Date: 2005
This encyclopedia aims to provide a critical overview of penal institutions in the United States within historical and contemporary contexts. Issues of race, gender, and class are fully integrated throughout in order to demonstrate the complexity of the implementation and intended results of incarceration.
Encyclopedia of Race and Crime by Helen Taylor-Greene (Editor); Shaun L. Gabbidon (Editor)
Call Number: Click title for online access.
Publication Date: 2009
Race historically and presently figures prominently in crime and justice reporting within the United States, in the areas of hate crimes, racial profiling, sentencing disparities, wrongful convictions, felon disenfranchisement, political prisoners, juveniles and the death penalty, and culturally specific delinquency prevention programs. The Encyclopedia of Race and Crime covers issues in both historical and contemporary contexts.

Subject Encyclopedia Collections

CQ Press Library
Provides full text access to CQ Press encyclopedias, handbooks and periodicals.
SAGE Knowledge
The social sciences platform for SAGE and CQ Press books, reference materials and other content.
Gale eBooks
Provides full text online access to Gale electronic books, including encyclopedias and other reference resources.
ABC CLIO eBooks This link opens in a new window
This eBook Collection contains encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, and guides from ABC-CLIO, Greenwood Press, Libraries Unlimited, and Praeger.
Oxford Reference
Contains the complete texts of many Oxford companions, encyclopedias, dictionaries and other reference titles in a fully indexed, cross-searchable database. Included in addition to articles are images, maps, timelines, bibliographies, photographs and much more.

Online Reference Collections

Biography Reference Source
A collection of full-text biographies, including the complete full-text run of Biography Today and Biography.
Gale eBooks
Provides full text online access to Gale electronic books, including encyclopedias and other reference resources.
Literature Resource Center
Contains articles from academic journals and literary magazines as well as excerpts from scholarly monographs, literary correspondence and diaries.
Oxford Reference
Contains the complete texts of many Oxford companions, encyclopedias, dictionaries and other reference titles in a fully indexed, cross-searchable database. Included in addition to articles are images, maps, timelines, bibliographies, photographs and much more.
SAGE Knowledge
The social sciences platform for SAGE and CQ Press books, reference materials and other content.