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American Foreign Policy

Getting Started: Selected Reference Materials

Finding Articles & Reports: Databases & Search Engines

News

General / Interdisciplinary Databases

International Relations, Political Science and Specialized Databases

Finding Government Documents

United States

Muhlenberg College receives about 30% of all materials published by the U.S. Federal Government. These items cover a wide range of subject areas. All of the government documents that we receive have records in Encompass Search.

Selected Online Resources

Foreign Relations of the United States (1861-1960)

"The Foreign Relations of the United States series is the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions that have been declassified and edited for publication. [...] This digital facsimile of Foreign Relations of the United States is a project of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries in collaboration with the University of Illinois at Chicago Libraries. This is an incomplete run from 1861-1960 with missing volumes being added as they can be acquired and processed."

National Security Archive

"Combines [...] investigative journalism center, research institute on international affairs, library and archive of declassified U.S. documents" and more.

ProQuest Congressional
Getting there: Library homepage -- Research -- Databases A-Z -- ProQuest Congressional
Information from the U.S. legislature, including full text of bills, public laws, committee reports, House and Senate documents , Congressional Record, Federal Register, and more government information.  Coverage dates vary.  Note especially the availability of hearings (1970-present).

Treaties and Other International Acts Series

"All treaties and international agreements other than treaties to which the United States has become a party" from 1996-present.

US Department of State Office of the Historian

"The Office of the Historian is responsible, under law, for the preparation and publication of the official documentary history of U.S. foreign policy in the Foreign Relations of the United States series."

Other

Governments on the World Wide Web

World Legal Information Institute: Countries
 

Additional Websites of Interest

Foreign Affairs Online
Excellent guide for students of foreign affairs. Includes annotated links to the following topics: US Government, Foreign States, UN, NGOs & IGOs, International Law, Human Rights, International Realations, Think Tanks and the Digital Divide.

Foreign Relations of the United States (1861-1960)
"The Foreign Relations of the United States series is the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions that have been declassified and edited for publication. [...] This digital facsimile of Foreign Relations of the United States is a project of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries in collaboration with the University of Illinois at Chicago Libraries. This is an incomplete run from 1861-1960 with missing volumes being added as they can be acquired and processed."

National Security Archive
"Combines [...] investigative journalism center, research institute on international affairs, library and archive of declassified U.S. documents" and more.

US Department of State Office of the Historian
"The Office of the Historian is responsible, under law, for the preparation and publication of the official documentary history of U.S. foreign policy in the Foreign Relations of the United States series."

WWW Virtual Library: International Affairs Resources
Compiled by a professor of International Studies at Elizabethtown College, this gateway site is organized into helpful categories. It contains a great depth of high quality information and it has been reviewed and highly ranked by several respected Social Science sources.

World Legal Information Institute

Organized by country and then by subject.

 

Agency for International Development

Bureau of International Labor Affairs (Department of Labor)

Central Intelligence Agency 

Department of Defense 

Department of Energy 

Department of State

Department of the Treasury

International Trade Administration (Department of Commerce)

International Trade Commission

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

National Nuclear Security Administration (Department of Energy)

National Security Agency

National Security Council

United States Mission to the United Nations

United States Trade Representative

How do I get the full text of my article?

To get the full text of an article, consider the following options:

- If you are in Encompass Search or a library database, look for "Check for Full Text buttons," "Access Online," or "Check eResources" buttons. These buttons will take you the full text of the article or tell you that the full text cannot be found. If the full text is not available from Trexler Library, look for buttons to request the item from another library via interlibrary loan. Or go directly to the interlibrary loan request forms.

- If you have citation information for the article (i.e., journal title, article title, publication year, etc.), type the information about your article in Encompass Search on the library website. If the library subscribes to the full text, you will be directed to the article (see first bullet above). If not, you can request a copy of the article via interlibrary loan.

- If Trexler Library does not have access to the full text of the article, search Google Scholar by article title to see if the author has made a copy freely available online. If not, you can request a copy of the article via interlibrary loan.

Finding Books

Encompass Search finds information by searching through a massive collection of books, scholarly journals, newspapers and magazines, dissertations, conference proceedings, music, video, maps, and more. 

To find only books, use the Books limit on the left sidebar of your search results page. Many items will be in Trexler Library; note the call number and status of the item to check its location and availability. For items not in Trexler Library, use the Interlibrary Loan to request a copy from another library.

Citing Your Sources

For information on why to cite your sources and how to avoid plagiarism, see the Get Started with Library Research: Cite Sources guide.

For help using Chicago style, consult the following resources:

  • The Chicago manual of style (16th ed., 2010)
    Location: Online or search Encompass Search by title or Ready Reference 808.027 C632m

For help with Zotero, a "free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources."

Resources for Class