Communication 100

Tips and tools for students majoring in Communication

The University Library offers a number of resources under the three major areas of communication: Interpersonal/Organizational; Public Relations; Media & Technology Studies.

To access Library materials, we encourage you to visit the Library and to become familiar with the Library Homepage

I.      Finding books…

     Search the Library Catalog for books, videos, CDs, archival materials, print periodicals, and government documents. REMEMBER! You won’t find individual articles in the catalog. You must search the databases and indexes for articles.

     The table below includes a sample of keywords and subjects to use when searching the catalog: 

Interpersonal/Organizational	Public Relations	Media & Technology Studies
Interpersonal communication	Public relations	Mass media
Family communication	Crisis (or conflict) management	Broadcast journalism
Organizational communication	Ethics in organizations	Film history
Small group communication	Marketing or advertising	Freedom of the press
Conflict management	Group problem solving	Gender & communication

II.      Finding articles…     

The following table includes a sample of communication-related databases:

DATABASE	DATABASE VENDOR (PUBLISHER)	DESCRIPTION
ABI Inform	Proquest	business related articles
Academic Search Elite	EBSCO	scholarly articles
Academic Universe	Lexis/Nexis	business, legal and newspaper articles
Communication Abstracts	CSA	communication- related abstracts of articles, books & reports.
Newspapers	Proquest	WI and national newspapers
Omnifile	WilsonWeb	popular, scholarly and newspaper articles.
“The Pointer” index	UWSP Library	index includes articles from 1895  to the present.
PsychInfo	EBSCO	popular and scholarly articles related to psych/behavior/interpersonal.
“Stevens Point Journal” index	UWSP Library	articles indexed include state and local news from 1992 to the present.

III.      Reference Room (1^st floor)

Use the Reference Room for quick look-ups and overviews. We have a number of reference titles related to communication, such as:

•     Advertising media A to Z : the definitive resource for media planning, buying, and research  HF5826.5 .S848

•      Encyclopedia of relationships across the lifespan  HM132 .T83

•      Career opportunities in radio  HE8689.4 .F54

IV.      Periodicals (2^nd floor)

Browse the periodicals (i.e., journals, newspapers, magazines) for the print copies of particular titles, such as:

•      Broadcasting & Cable

•      Communication Quarterly

•      Critical Studies in Media Communication

•      Human Communication Research

•      Journal of Marriage and Family

•      Public Relations Quarterly

V.      Government Documents (6^th floor)

Use the Gov Docs collection for information on topics, such as:

•     Telecommunications policies (FCC)

•     International relations

•     Country information and crisis communication

VI.      University Archives (5^th floor)

Use the Archives for information on the history of this campus, student organizations, yearbooks, files and photos of campus buildings, and early copies of publications, such as The Pointer. 

VII.      Other useful services …

•      Universal Borrowing – borrow books and videos from other UW System Libraries if we do not own something you’re looking for

•      Inter-Library Loan  - obtain articles or books that are not available through the UWSP Library or UW Library System

•      Renew library materials online.

•      Virtual Reference Desk – The VRD includes web sites that have been carefully chosen to help you find the very best resources. This site includes a Communication topic with a number of excellent resources.

•      Off campus access  - Access databases and indexes from off-campus by setting up a Virtual Private Network. If you need further assistance, contact the Help Desk at 346-4347. 

•      Still need help with your research? Ask us! at the reference desk.