Start with Academic Subject Encyclopedias

An overview of your broad topic area helps you understand...

• what the key issues are and how you may want to refine your topic
• who are the stakeholders (the groups or individuals this topic concerns)
• a context of how your topic relates to the other issues that surround it
• a historical perspective on your topic
• specialized vocabulary or terminology used in this field (you will use these words as search terms, or keywords, later in your research process)
• and helps you find leads to additional sources! Be sure to check the further reading/ bibliographies.

The articles below offer just a sample of what's available in GVRL.

Use reference articles to understand the general view of what is happening with an issue, who is involved, and why there is debate over it. 

You can use important words or ideas (see the highlighted words in the example below) as keywords to build more focused or related searches.

Reference articles provide background info on a topic. Read reference articles for: definitions, core issues, events, stakeholders, terminology, and more.

Use those key words to help focus your research and as search terms in library databases.