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UMass Libraries > Subject Research Guides > Political Science Research Guide

Library Course Guide: International Law
Political Science 356

Introduction
This guide is arranged in the order that one might work through the research process. However, if you would like to go to a particular area, choose from the alphabetical grouping below.

  Books | Citation Styles | Databases | Internet Resources 
Journals, Periodicals | Library Help & Contacts | Locating Library Materials 
 Reference Materials | Research Process

Reference Materials
Locate background information on your topic by using the UMass Library Catalog. You can do a search and restrict the search to reference materials:

Some sample reference books on the topics for this class:

• Handbook of International Law  UM/REF KZ 3410 A94
• International Law: A Dictionary  UM/REF KZ 1161 B63
• Encyclopedia of Historical Treaties and Alliances  UM/REF KZ 1160 P48 
• Blackstons's International Law Documents  UM/REF KZ 64 B53
• Basic Documents in International Law  UM/REF KZ 64 B37

Please note: The "REF" before the call number indicates an item in the Reference Collection.

Books
Search for books in the UMass Library Catalog by subject. Below are a few of the subject headings you could use:

• Immunities of Foreign States
• International Court of Justice
• Nuclear Weapons Testing Law and Legislation
• Sovereignty
• Torture 
• War on Terrorism, 2001 

• Use WorldCat and Other Library Catalogs for searching other catalogs if you don't find books in the Five Colleges Library Catalog.
• Borrow books from Interlibrary Loan.

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Databases
Locate citations, abstracts and/or full text of journal articles, magazine articles, newspapers, dissertations, government documents, and other information sources in your subject.

Please note: In some of our databases you may see the UMLinks button - . Clicking on this button will take you directly to the full text of your article, if available, or to other options for finding the article if not available online. For more information, see Frequently Asked Questions about UMLinks.

• Academic Search Premier
  Indexes hundreds of scholarly journals. Full-text is available for some articles while only the citation and abstract are available for other articles. Tip: For scholarly articles, limit the search to refereed publications.
• Columbia International Affairs Online 
  Full-text working and position papers, books, and journals, from international affairs research institutes.
• CQ Researcher
  Well-documented full text overviews of current issues, including bibliographies, chronologies and other useful features.
• International Political Science Abstracts
  Citations to hundreds of political science journals and yearbooks.
• LegalTrac
  Citations to law reviews and law-related journals. 
• LexisNexis Academic NOTE: LexisNexis may be difficult to search, but it works well if you have a citation already.
  And it often contains difficult to find treaties and agreements, judicial and arbitral decisions, national legislation, international organizations resolutions and other documents in a publication entitled International Legal Materials. To search, click on "Sources" in the black bar at the top of the page, type International Legal Materials in the box, click on Search This Title and in the first box type in the full name of the document, e.g. Inter American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture. LexisNexis Database Guide.
• PAIS International
  Indexes and abstracts periodical articles, books, government documents, serials, pamphlets, and reports of public and private organizations, including areas related to legal studies. 1970 to present. PAIS Database Guide.
• United Nations Treaty Collection
   Contains the texts of over 50,000 bilateral and multilateral treaties and agreement, in their original languages and French and English.
• Westlaw Campus Research
  Full text legal encyclopedias, law reviews, and legal treatises; federal and state statutes, regulations, court decisions; and newspapers, news wires, magazines and business and industry data.

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Locating Journal Articles With A Citation
If you already have a citation to a particular article that you want to read, you can search for its full text using the UMass Library Catalog.

1. Choose journal title and type the name of the journal title in the box that appears.
2. If there is an online version available and you wish to access it, click on the title that appears with UM/Internet designation and follow the instructions. If a print version is available and you wish to locate it, click on the title that appears without the UM/Internet designation, write down the call number given and location (UM/Main - W.E.B. Du Bois, UM/Sciences - Integrated Sciences & Engineering Library, Special Collections etc.).
3. If it is a print journal, consult the Call Number chart to identify the floor for your material.

If this library doesn't own the material you want, try searching for an item from the Five Colleges Catalog, or fill out an Interlibrary Loan Request Form with the appropriate citation information. Staff will attempt to locate and bring the material here for you to use.

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Internet Resources
Please note: Keep in mind when you are researching information on the Web that anyone can publish a web page. Read about the advantages and disadvantages of the "Free Web" and evaluate the information you find.

CRIMINAL LAW

• International Criminal Law (EISIL)

DISPUTE SETTLEMENT

• International Dispute Settlement (EISIL)

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

• Environmental Law-International (Washburn University)
• International Environmental Law (EISIL)

FOREIGN GOVERNMENT RESOURCES

• CIA World Factbook
• Foreign Government Resources (University of Michigan)
• Foreign Governments (Northwestern University)

GENERAL INTERNATIONAL LAW RESEARCH GUIDES/RESOURCES

• Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law (American Society of International Law)
• Electronic Information System for International Law  (American Society of International Law)

HUMAN RIGHTS

• Amnesty International
• Human Rights Library (University of Minnesota)
• International Human Rights (EISIL)
• International Protection of Human Rights (Universityof Toronto)

OFFICIAL ORGANIZATION AND TRIBUNAL WEBSITES

• African Union
• African Commission for Human and People's Rights
• Arab League
• European Court of Human Rights
• Inter-American Commission on Hurman Rights
• International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes
• International Committee of the Red Cross
• International Court of Justice
• International Labour Organization
• United Nations
• United Nations Secretariat Law of the Sea
• World Trade Organization

REFUGEES

• Refugee Protection (Georgetown University)

WARFARE

• Law of Armed Conflict Library (University of Minnesota)
• Use of Force (EISIL)

WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS

• International Women's Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (University of Toronto)
• Women's Human Rights (EISIL)

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The Research Process (an introduction)

• Getting Started with Research - Learn about some very basic research tools and when they are appropriate.

• Merlin Information Literacy Tutorial - In-depth tutorial on the library research process, including evaluation and citation of information sources.

Citation Styles

See Using Citation Styles for examples and links to other standard style formats.

Library Help & Contacts

• Ask a Librarian
• Evaluate a Session
• Instructional Services
• Interlibrary Loan
• Request a Consultation
  
• Subject Research Guides
• Tutorials

Prepared for Political Science 356, International Law, by Barbara Morgan, 8/11//2006

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