Databases, Periodical Indexes, & Abstracts
Boston University Libraries subscribe to the following subject and interdisciplinary databases. They provide citations and sometimes access to full-text journal articles on many subjects, including Boston-area topics. If, for example, you are doing research on the architecture of “Faneuil Hall”, you could type in that name in the Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals.
Databases
Social Sciences
- Social Sciences Full Text This link opens in a new window Social Sciences Full Text provides access to hundreds of English language journals in the social sciences. About two-thirds of the journals are peer-reviewed. Date coverage: 1983 - present.
- Social Science Premium Collection This link opens in a new window “This collection provides access to databases covering international literature in social sciences, including politics, public policy, sociology, social work, anthropology, criminology, linguistics, library science, and education. Featured databases include IBSS, Sociological Abstracts and Worldwide Political Science Abstracts. Together, they provide abstracts, indexing and full-text coverage of journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, working papers, and more.”
- PAIS Index This link opens in a new window The PAIS International database covers current public policy issues and areas of potential legislation. Cited articles, books and documents can date back to 1910 and are listed in the original language. While some full text is included, the index primarily links to full text articles available through existing BU subscriptions. Date coverage: Approximately 1910 - present.
- Worldwide Political Science Abstracts (WPSA) This link opens in a new window Indexes and abstracts international relations, political science, and foreign affairs literature. May include references to dissertations, books, or scholarly articles. Some full text included; links provided to BU content. Date coverage: 1975 - present.
- EconLit This link opens in a new window EconLit contains citations and selected abstracts of international literature in the field of economics. It is produced by the American Economic Association and corresponds to the print Journal of Economic Literature and the Index of Economic Articles. It covers journal articles, dissertations and books, as well as chapters and articles in books and conference proceedings. Date coverage: 1969 - present.
- Sociological Abstracts This link opens in a new window Sociological Abstracts indexes and abstracts the international literature of sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. The database provides abstracts of journal articles and citations to book reviews. It also provides abstracts of books, book chapters, dissertations, and conference papers. Forty percent of the content is published outside of North America. Date coverage: 1952 - present.
- Criminal Justice Abstracts This link opens in a new window Criminal Justice Abstracts indexes and abstracts international journal articles and as well as books on criminal justice and criminology. Date coverage: 1968 - present.
- Criminal Justice Database This link opens in a new window ProQuest Criminal Justice indexes and abstracts U.S. and international scholarly journals and trade journals on crime, its causes and impacts, legal and social implications, as well as litigation and crime trends. Date coverage: 1981 - present.
- TRID TRID is an integrated database that combines the records from TRB’s Transportation Research Information Services (TRIS) Database and the OECD’s Joint Transport Research Centre’s International Transport Research Documentation (ITRD) Database. TRID provides access to more than one million records of transportation research worldwide.
- HUD USER Bibliographic Database The HUD USER Bibliographic Database contains more than 10,000 full-abstract citations to research reports, articles, books, monographs, and data sources in housing policy, building technology, economic development, urban planning, and a host of other relevant fields.
- Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window Provides bibliographic and full text content, including indexing and abstracts for scholarly business journals back to 1886 and full text journal articles in all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, accounting, finance and economics. The database full text content includes investment research reports, industry reports, market research reports, company profiles, SWOT analyses. Sources covered by this database include Economist Intelligence Unit country reports.
Environment & Architecture
- Environment Complete This link opens in a new window Environment Complete is a comprehensive database focused on all aspects of environmental science including conservation, biodiversity, climate, pollution, agriculture and aquaculture, environmental law and policy, urban planning, environmental engineering, and more. Date coverage: 1940 - present with selected full text from 1975 - present.
- GreenFILE This link opens in a new window GreenFILE searches journal articles, government documents, and ebooks relating to human impact on the environment. It covers interdisciplinary topics such as environmental policy, environmental engineering, pollution, conservation, and other areas in which human activities and nature coincide. GreenFILE also contains a cited references feature that allows the user to see what material the author has cited in their publication, and what later publications cite it. Date coverage: varies by publication.
- Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals This link opens in a new window Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals indexes American state and regional periodicals, professional association publications, and the major journals on architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. Subject areas are architecture and design, archaeology, city planning, interior design, and historic preservation. Includes obituary citations. Date coverage: 1934 – present
Humanities
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America: History & Life (AHL) Covers the history and culture of the U.S. and Canada from prehistory to present times; indexes journal articles, book titles and chapters, reviews from numerous multilingual sources; all abstracts in English. Date coverage: 1949-present
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ARTbibliographies Modern (ABM) ARTbibiographies Modern (ABM) indexes and abstracts international journal articles, books, essays, exhibition catalogs, dissertations, and exhibition reviews on all forms of modern and contemporary arts, including photography, dating from the late 19th century onwards. Date coverage: late 1960s – present.
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Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals indexes American state and regional periodicals, professional association publications, and the major journals on architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. Subject areas are architecture and design, archaeology, city planning, interior design, and historic preservation. Includes obituary citations. Date coverage: 1934 – present
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BHA (Bibliography of the History of Art) & RILA (Répertoire de la Litterature de l'Art) BHA (Bibliography of the History of Art) and RILA (Répertoire de la Litterature de l'Art) index and abstract art-related books, conference proceedings, dissertations, exhibition and dealers' catalogs and periodical articles in many languages with an emphasis on European art from the medieval through modern periods. Date coverage: 1975 – 2007.
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Index to 19th-century American Art Periodicals Index to 19th-century American Art Periodicals indexes 42 art journals and describes the entire journal contents: articles, art notes, illustrations, stories, poems, and advertisements thereby providing information on popular culture and industry, artists and illustrators, painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, architecture and design, exhibitions and sales, decorations, and collecting. Date coverage: 1840 - 1907.
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window Indexes critical materials on literature, languages, linguistics, and folklore. Includes citations from worldwide publications: periodicals, books, essay collections, working papers, proceedings, dissertations and bibliographies. Date coverage: 1920s - present.
Multidisciplinary Databases
- BU Libraries Search (BULS) This link opens in a new window BU Libraries Search provides a single place to search for a wide variety of academic material provided by the library. The material covered by the search includes books, journals, scores, video and audio recordings, and other physical items held by the library. The search also covers ebooks and ejournals owned by the library, as well as online material provided by the library from a variety of sources.
- Project Muse This link opens in a new window Project Muse provides digital access to scholarly journals and books in the humanities and social sciences. The scholarly content comes from non-profit scholarly publishers, including university presses and societies. The full text resources include journal articles, book reviews and book chapters.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window This database provides full text access to the back issues of core scholarly journals in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Book reviews are included as well as journal articles. Abstracts are available for some of the articles. Date coverage: earliest issues of each journal up to the most current five years for most publications and to the present for some.
- ScienceDirect This link opens in a new window ScienceDirect is a general science database that searches journal articles and book chapters in all areas of science, technology, and health. ScienceDirect also provides full text access to a number of major reference works, allows the user to create email alerts for specific journal titles, book series, or research topics, and provides access to a limited number of "pre-pub" articles (articles accepted for publication but not yet officially released). Date coverage: varies by publication.
- ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) This link opens in a new window This database contains indexing and abstracts of American doctoral dissertations accepted at accredited institutions since 1861 and a selection from other countries. Masters theses are included selectively. Date coverage: full text 1997 - present; abstracts 1980 - present; indexing 1861 - present.
- Web of Science This link opens in a new window Web of Science is one of the core general science databases covering all aspects of scientific literature. It also has a number of tools that make it a unique resource for finding scholarly literature. Item records come with links both to the works cited by the paper in question and the future works that cite that paper. Web of Science also allows the user to set up email alerts for specific authors or topics, provides researcher profiles, and allows the user to search conference proceedings.
Featured Journals in City Planning & Urban Affairs
- Urban Affairs Review Urban Affairs Review (UAR) has been a leading scholarly journal focused on urban politics, policy, and governance for fifty years. Submissions reflecting different scholarly disciplines and methodological perspectives are welcome when the research advances theory and improves our understanding of political processes, policy impacts, and approaches to governance in urban, regional, and metropolitan settings. The Urban Affairs Review is affiliated with American Political Science Association’s section on Urban Politics.
- Journal of Urban Affairs Journal of Urban Affairs is the journal of the Urban Affairs Association. Focusing on urban research and policy analysis, the Journal of Urban Affairs is among the most widely cited journals in the field. Published for the Urban Affairs Association, the journal provides a multidisciplinary perspective on issues of relevance to both scholars and practitioners.
- Urban Geography Urban Geography publishes original papers on problem-oriented current research by geographers and other social scientists on urban policy; race, poverty, and ethnicity in the city; international differences in urban form and function; historical preservation; the urban housing market; and provision of services and urban economic activity. Included in most issues are review papers and special features.
- Journal of the American Planning Association For more than 70 years, the quarterly Journal of the American Planning Association ( JAPA ) has published research, commentaries, and book reviews useful to practicing planners, policymakers, scholars, students, and citizens of urban, suburban, and rural areas.
- Cities Cities publishes articles on many aspects of urban planning and policy. It distinguishes itself by providing an international and interdisciplinary platform for the exchange of ideas and information among urban planners, policy makers and analysts, and urbanists from all disciplines.
- Journal of Urban Planning and Development The Journal of Urban Planning and Development covers the application of civil engineering to such aspects of urban planning as area-wide transportation, the coordination of planning and programming of public works and utilities, and the development and redevelopment of urban areas. Subjects include environmental assessment, esthetic considerations, land use planning, underground utilities, infrastructure management, renewal legislation, transportation planning, and evaluation of the economic value of state parks.
- Journal of Urban Design The Journal of Urban Design is a scholarly international journal which advances theory, research and practice in urban design.
- Journal of Urban Economics The Journal of Urban Economics provides a focal point for the publication of research papers in the rapidly expanding field of urban economics. It publishes papers of great scholarly merit on a wide range of topics and employing a wide range of approaches to urban economics.
- Regional Science and Urban Economics Regional Science and Urban Economics exists to facilitate and encourage high quality scholarship on important theoretical and empirical issues in urban and regional research. Given a rapidly changing field, the Journal's emphasis is on microeconomic analyses of spatial phenomena. The Journal solicits original research contributions in spatial economics, economic geography, and related disciplines.
- Review of Urban & Regional Development Studies Review of Urban & Regional Development Studies contains rigorous empirical analysis, with many articles emphasizing theoretical and methodological issues, while others focus on policy relevance and the operational aspects of the academic disciplines. The journal focuses on issues of immediate practical interest to those involved in policy formation and implementation. Interdisciplinary and international in perspective, RURDS has a wide appeal: in addition to scholars, readership includes planners, engineers and managers in government, business and development agencies worldwide.
- Urban Ecosystems Urban Ecosystems is an international journal devoted to scientific investigations of urban environments and the relationships between socioeconomic and ecological structures and processes in urban environments. The scope of the journal is broad, including interactions between urban ecosystems and associated suburban and rural environments.
- Town Planning Review As a leading urban planning and regional planning journal, TPR provides a principal forum for communication between researchers and students, policy analysts and practitioners. It publishes a diversity of research approaches, welcoming full-length papers and review articles contributing to the advancement of town and regional planning research in highly developed economies and in emerging industrial states.
