Internet Research Skills is a clear and concise guide to the effective use of the Internet for students in the social sciences. The open web is becoming central to student research practice, not least because of its accessibility, and this clear text describes search strategies and outlines the critical skills necessary to deal with such diverse and disorganized materials. The guide covers all of the essential aspects of Internet research, with each chapter containing a number of illustrations, inset boxes and short exercises. The first half of the book deals with publications online, devoting separate chapters to the academic articles, books, official publications and news sources which form the core secondary sources for social science research. The second half of the book deals with the open web, a vast and confusing realm of materials, many of which have no direct print counterpart. Features include: - Inset boxes, including search tips, technical explanations, examples and warning tips on avoiding common pitfalls. - Exercises at the end of each chapter that cover the key skills. - Worked examples throughout the book, drawing on a range of social science disciplines.- Illustration with relevant screengrabs. This concise and accessible introduction to Internet research skills will be a perfect guide for undergraduate students carrying out research projects and for postgraduate students working on theses and dissertations.

Table of Contents

Introduction Books Articles Subject Guides Searching the Keyword Search Engines Interaction, News and Multimedia Governments, Archives and Statistics Evaluation and Citation

Author Biography

Niall O Dochartaigh is a lecturer in political science and sociology at the National University of Ireland, Galway.