WISER Social Sciences: Researching International Development

1. WISER Social Sciences:Researching International Development Sue Pemberton: Former Subject Consultant for International Development Workshops in Information Skills and Electronic Resources Oxford University Library Services

2. Researching International Development • Aim of this session is to enable the non-specialist to find information on international development issues including: • Material on OLIS • Appropriate databases for finding journal articles and research papers • Statistical information • Quality free Internet resources

3. Researching International Development • What do we mean by International Development? • Which libraries cover it? • Finding material on OLIS • Databases for International Development • Statistical Information • Quality free Internet resources • How to find out more

4. What do we mean by International Development? • Economics, politics, sociology and recent history of developing countries in the broadest sense • Developing countries generally defined as countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America • International development is a multi- and inter- disciplinary subject

5. Where can I find International Development material in Oxford? • Social Science Library has the largest collection • Supports the teaching and research of the Department of International Development • Holds legal deposit material in the subject area • Has an extensive collection of Discussion and Working papers from institutions concerned with International Development • Has an extensive collection of international social and financial statistical series

6. Where can I find International Development material in Oxford? • Subject-based libraries: • Radcliffe Science Library – agriculture, medicine • Refugee Studies Centre Library – forced migration • School of Geography and the Environment Library - general information about Developing Countries, natural resources, environmental studies. • Social and cultural Anthropology (Tylor) Library – social anthropology • Balfour Library (Pitt Rivers Museum) – ethnography, anthropology

7. Where can I find International Development material in Oxford? • Area-based libraries: • Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House – sub-Saharan Africa • Indian Institute Library – South Asia, Tibet, Himalayas • Latin American Centre Library – Latin America • Information about these and other libraries can be found at http://www.ouls.ox.ac.uk/libraries/

8. Finding International Development on OLIS • Key subject headings • Developing countries • Economic development (+ country) • Country + economic conditions • Country + politics and government • Country + social conditions • Economic assistance (+ country)

9. Databases on OxLIP for International Development • CSA (Cambridge Scientific Abstracts) includes Worldwide Political Science Abstracts • IBSS (International Bibliography of the Social Sciences) • EconLit • Social Science Citation Index (Web of Knowledge)

10. Full text OxLIP resources • United Nations University Press publications • World Development Reports (World Bank) • Oxford Scholarship Online – Oxford University Press titles, sections for Economics & Finance and Political Science • Oxford Reference Online, xreferplus Collections of reference books, useful for basic facts on a country, political regime etc • Forced Migration Online

11. Statistics for International Development on OxLIP • ESDS International (Economic and Social Data Service) • Requires an ATHENS password even when used in Oxford • Also requires you to go through a registration procedure the first time that you use it.

12. Statistics for International Development on OxLIP • ESDS International includes: • IMF statistics • OECD statistics • UN Common Database • World Bank Development Indicators • World Bank Global Development Finance • ESDS provides online guides to all databases, see under User Support • Also provides excellent Guide to freely available international data resources, see under Access datahttp://www.esds.ac.uk/International/access/guide.asp

13. Freely available Internet resources Eldis Gateway to Development Information http://www.eldis.org/ • Hosted by the Institute of Development Studies • Over 15,000 full text articles and research papers • Subject and country resource guides • Sign up for email bulletins • Links to over 4,500 organisations

14. Freely available internet resources British Library for Development Studies http://blds.ids.ac.uk/blds/ • Search the catalogue of Europe’s largest research collection for Development • Includes resource guides and country profiles • Can combine search for printed material with full text papers on Eldis • Provides links to freely available internet resources

15. Freely available internet resources • Academic/research sites - examples • Global Development Network http://www.gdnet.org/ • African Studies Centre, Leiden http://www.ascleiden.nl/library/ • Government sites - examples • Department for International Development http://www.dfid.gov.uk/

16. Freely available internet resources • International organisations - examples • World Bank http://www.worldbank.org/ • United Nations http://www.un.org/english/ • United Nations Development Program http://www.undp.org/ • OneWorld.net http://www.oneworld.net/ • Charities - examples • Oxfam (Try link to Oxfam International) http://www.oxfam.org/en • Tearfund http://www.tearfund.org/ Remember, all these sites will have their own agendas!

17. How to find out more • Try the RDN Virtual Tutorial for Development,http://www.vts.rdn.ac.uk/tutorial/development • Learn more about using the Internet in general • Collect a ‘basket’ of useful links • Explore some of the sources and sites mentioned in this presentation • Ask Library staff. Subject Consultant for International Development: Mark Janes, mark.janes@ssl.ox.ac.uk