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Sage Research Methods
SAGE Research Methods supports beginning and advanced researchers throughout a research project, from writing a research question, choosing a method, gathering and analyzing data, to writing up and publishing the findings.
Use reference materials for background information for your topic, or to find good keywords to use when searching databases. These are dictionaries, encyclopedias and guides.
- Wiley Encyclopedia of Management
- International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences
- Oxford Reference Online: Economics and Business - Search business topics online in 8 Oxford dictionaries.
- Dictionary of Business and Management
- A Dictionary of Accounting
- A Dictionary of Finance and Banking
- A Dictionary of Human Resource Management
Grey literature is an important source of information.
Grey literature is defined as "information produced on all levels of government, academics, business and industry in electronic and print formats not controlled by commercial publishing" ie. where publishing is not the primary activity of the producing body." —ICGL Luxembourg definition, 1997. Expanded in New York, 2004
Types of Grey Literature
- Government Information
- Dissertations and Theses
- Conference Proceedings (select Conference Proceedings Citation Index)
- Newspapers and Magazines
- Think Tanks
Resources
- Alternative Press Index - Indexes over 300 periodicals, newspapers and magazines which report and analyze the practices and theories of cultural, economic, political, and social change. 90% of the publications indexed in API are unique.
- Canadian Research Index (Provides detailed citations to monographs and serial publications in the Microlog microfiche collection located in MADGIC)
- GreySource - directory of organizations
- Searching Grey Literature - University of Toronto
Policy Reports and Working Papers
- Brookings Institute
- Canadian Public Documents Collection
- Conference Board of Canada e-Library In addition to the e-Library, look to particular Centres for research on specific topics. Go to Conference Board of Canada and scroll down to the bottom of the page. Select Sitemap. Under Special Projects you will see Centre for Business Innovation, Compensation Research Centre ,Global Commerce Centre, etc.
- National Bureau of Economics Research (NBER) Working Papers
- PolicyFile (U.S.)
- Social Research and Demonstration Corporation A non-profit research organization, created specifically to develop, field test, and rigorously evaluate new programs.
Think Tanks
- ]Harvard Kennedy School provides a searchable database of more tha 590 think tanks and research centres.
For current articles in trade journals and business magazines search
- Business Source Complete
- Canadian Business & Current Affairs
- Factiva
- Lexis/Nexis Academic Universe- Canada
Academic articles are found by searching the following
- Business Source Complete (limit to Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals)
- EconLit
- Emerald Management eJournals
- Google Scholar be sure to read the Search Guide for tips on searching and access
- PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service)
- Scopus
- Web of Science
Good to know:
- Within a database, limit your search to scholarly articles when it is appropriate to disregard other resources.
- Never limit to full-text only as we may subscribe to the journal you find from another vendor. Use the Get it! icon to search for the full text when it is not immediately available.
- Use available options to search more than one database at a time.
- Look for the option to set up an RSS feed or to Create an Alert. You are then notified when a new entry is added to the database that meets your search criteria.
- Use the Interlibrary Loans RACER form to request items not held at Carleton’s library.
Use citation databases to find if a particular author and/or paper has been cited by other authors.
Examples:
Web of Science
Select Cited Reference Search from the top toolbar.
You have the article
Dyke L.S., Murphy S.A., How we define success: A qualitative study of what matters most to women and men (2006) Sex Roles, 55 (5-6), pp. 357-371.
Enter one author in cited author box
Dyke L* (use surname, initials)
From the list, select the article and click on Finish Search at the top of the list.
Results show the article has been cited 51 times - the most recent in Sept 2018.
Note the option under My Tools to Save your Search and Create an Alert to be notified of any future citings of this article.
Scopus
Choose Author Seach from the top toolbar.
Enter author's name and affiliation if known
Dyke L*
Select displayed result. On the right-hand side, all published articles by the author will be listed. Click on the article for citing references.
Remember to see if a citing article has itself been cited.
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ABDC Journal Quality List from the Australian Business Deans Council
- Journal Citation Reports - Provides evaluation of journals by the impact factor within a given discipline.
- Bloomberg News
- PressReader - PDFs to more than 2300 newspapers from 97 countries in over 55 languages.
- Ottawa Business Journal - Includes the Ottawa Book of Lists
- Canadian Business & Current Affairs - Provides full-text to Canadian business journals and magazines.
- Canadian Newsstream Access to over 280 Canadian news sources
- Eureka - Full-text Canadian French and English newspapers from Alberta, the Atlantic provinces, Québec and aboriginal communities. Includes full-text transcripts of radio and television broadcasts from CBC, CTV and SRC.
- Factiva - (Globe and Mail, the Financial Times (London) and the Wall Street Journal live here)
- Wire Report - The leading news service covering Canada's rapidly converging telecom and media sectors.
- Journalist's resource: research on today's news topics
Historical Canadian & Other Newspapers
- The Globe and Mail: Canada's Heritage from 1844
- New York Times Archives 1851-2005
- Toronto Star: Pages of the Past (Toronto Star)
- Times Digital Archive 1785-1985
Global Sources
News Monitoring Services
Global Economic Monitor (World Bank)
Getting Started:
Look for a country report in Business Source Complete.
- Select Country Reports from contents on right hand side.
- Type country name in the search box.
- Explore resulting reports.
The World Economic Forum publishes global annual reports including:
- The Global Competitiveness Report
- The Global Risks Report
- Readiness for the Future of Production Report
- The Global Information Technology Report
Key Resources:
- EIU.com Economist Intelligence Unit
- IMD World competitiveness yearbook
- globalEDGE Site from Michigan State University providing country and industry profiles.
- Doing Business - World Bank Provides objective measures of business regulations for local firms in 183 economies and selected cities
- Conference Board of Canada e-Library - browse by topic Economic Trends for forecasting at federal, provincial, and municipal levels in Canada.
Includes consumer and business confidence reports
TIP: Search NAICS 2017 to get the NAICS code for an industry
Canadian Only
Global (also includes Canadian data)
- Bloomberg See our help guides for instructions and tips.
- WRDS Wharton Research Data Services
- Mergent Online
- EDGAR
- Factiva
- Passport
Tips
Look for a SWOT anaylsis:
- Go to Business Source Complete and search for your company name. Scroll down and limit by Company Report and SWOT Analysis.
- Try Passport. Select Companies from the top tab and key in your company name. Select relevant segment and open the profile. Look in the table of contents for a SWOT analysis.
Look to the company's website for valuable information: Read the Management Discussion and Analysis - (MD&A) section of the Annual Report or 10k. Read the letter to the shareholders from the CEO in the company's annual report.
Industry Data & Reports
- Bloomberg - go to BI for industry data. Use command ANR for analyst recommendations.
- Business Source Complete - search your topic, product, company or industry. Under Refine your results choose Industry Overview and Industry Profile.
- Mergent Online - when connected, select the Report Search tab from the menu. Select industry of interest and then geographical region.
- Factiva - mouse over Companies/Markets from menu bar at top of the page, select Industry. Select industry from the list provided. Published profiles are found under Analysis and Profiles from menu on left.
- Passport - Go to Industries at the top of the page, select the relevant industry or industries and narrow by country or countries. Tip - choose the industry plus specific parts of industry as there is often more than one industry profile.
- Conference Board of Canada e-Library - Browse by topic -> Industry Sector Economics for industry profiles or enter industry name in the search box.
Look for valuable information and data from trade associations
Google the industry + country + associations to find trade associations
For example:
- Canadian Toy Association
- Retail Council of Canada
- American Apparel & Footwear Association
- Telecommunications Industry Association
For help with writing reports, do a subject search in OMNI for:
Suggested Titles
- AMA handbook of business writing HF5726.A55 2010
- Wall Street Journal guide to information graphics: the dos and don'ts of presenting data, facts and figures HF5718.22 .W65 2010
Guides
- Citation Guide - Excellent guide to citing business sources in Chicago Style from Harvard Business School
- Chicago Manual of Style Online
- Academic Citation Guides
Key Resource
- Use the excellent resource OWL - Purdue University's Online Writing Lab.
Expand General Writing to explore:
- Grad Navigate workshops and services that will provide you with advice and practical skills necessary for success in today’s highly competitive job market.
- Borrowing and Renewing: Use your Campus Card to borrow up to 100 items for 120 days with one renewal, subject to recall.
- Interlibrary Loans: Our interlibrary loan system, called RACER, is used to place orders for items not held in the library's collection.
- Visiting other Libraries: Your Campus Card can be used to borrow books at almost all academic libraries in Canada.
- Graduate Study Spaces: Study carrels, study rooms, and lockers are available to graduate students. They are located on the 5th floor of the library. Students must fill out an application form to reserve space.
- Professional Development Event and Workshop Calendar: The Library offers a slate of professional research skills workshops. Events are co-sponsored by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs.
- Citation Management: Explore some of the many available tools that help you manage and organize the references you gather during your research.
- NVivo: Introduction to a qualitative data analysis tool. See how NVivo can help you keep your research project organized. Learn how to create projects and import a wide variety of data types (text, audio, video, social media).
- Scholarly Communications: Resources for authors and researchers.
- Open Access: Resources for authors and researchers, including depositing your research data in Dataverse.
- MyGradSkills.ca: A resource for graduate students to enhance their professional skills so that they can succeed during their studies and research, and in their career paths. Includes a number of online modules on topics including teaching & learning, career development, community engagement, entrepreneurship, and much more.
Government Information - customized search engines
Areas of governmental interest
Cultural Insights includes preferred managerial qualities; hierarchy and decision-making and motivating local colleagues
International development management
Global trends for planning purposes
- Policy Horizons Canada
- Global Economic Prospects (World Bank - Library has World Bank e-Library)
- World Economic Outlook (IMF - Library has IMF eLibrary)
- Policy Challenges for the Next 50 Years (OECD - Library has OECD - iLibrary) - The OECD is interested in: Corporate governance, Investment and Industry and Entrepreneurship, amongst other areas
Business Statistics
Canada
Canadian Business Patterns, Intercorporate Ownership and Financial Performance Indicators for Canadian Business (1994-2011) are all available in <odesi> (Scholars Portal for Data) Current Financial Performance Data is available at Industry Canada's website as is Canadian Industry Statistics
CANSIM II (from the University of Toronto) - has a charting function and permits more choice in altering time periods
United States
- Data and Statistics about the United States (USA, gov)
- FedStats
- StatsAmerica
- United States Census Bureau
- Census Reporter
- Visualizations of American Industry Data - Data USA
