LibGuides: GU-Q IPOL 321-70: Energy Policy in the Middle East: Starting Out

Library Services

This guide is designed to help you find the best resources for your assignments for the course "Energy Policy in the Middle East".

Consultations

Send me an email (pt491@georgetown.edu) to arrange for an individual consultation. I can help you locate reliable and authoritative library sources, books, articles, or primary sources. d

Working Hours

Librarian: I am available from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Sunday - Thursday.

Library: Working Hours

Starting out your Research

How do I focus my research question?
How can I find background information on my topic?

Watch the following video to learn how to construct a clear and focused research question

Fill in the handout below to make sure your research question is clear and focused

Focus your Research Question handout
use the questions in the handout to help your focus your research question

Use reference sources like encyclopedias, specialized dictionaries or handbooks

At the beginning stages of your assignment you will need some additional background information to clarify parts of your research question. Also, during the middle stages of your project, you might need to clarify a definition, or explore related topics.

Use reference sources to:

Find more background information on your subject(s) quickly and comprehensively.
Create a list of related terms with tools like the Mind Map, which will help you later on your research process.
Clarify new terminology or information that comes up during your work on an assignment.
Find additional resources through reference and further reading lists.

Credo Reference This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text online versions of general and subject dictionaries and encyclopedias.

CountryWatch This link opens in a new window
Geographic, political, and economic information in narrative and statistical form on 192 individual countries. Provides GDP, growth, money, prices, unemployment, government, debt, trade, and balance of payments. Productivity data on five key sectors. Gives country rankings for trade, population, productivity, development and technology.

Searching Efficiently

Now that you have settled on a research question, break it down to its basic concepts and create lists of keywords. Watch the following video to learn how to proceed from your research question to a list of relevant keywords.

Watch the following video to learn how to find print books and e-books using GU-Q Library's HoyaSearch.

Subject Search

An effective way to retrieve the most relevant results is to conduct a subject search. In "Advanced Search" on the library's website, use the "Subject" field. Combine your keywords with AND | OR | NOT expand or limit your searches accordingly. Some suggested searches for this course include:

"Energy policy" OR "Energy Policy, Economics and Management" (very broad search but includes all possible results )

"Middle East" AND "Energy" (very narrow search)

"Energy policy" NOT "renewable" (search results will not include the topic you are not interested in)

Watch the following video to learn how to find peer-reviewed articles using GU-Q Library's HoyaSearch.