Child and Adolescent Development (CADV) Research Guide

Journals

The Oviatt Library subscribes to 25,000 academic journals, either in print or online, or both. There are various ways to access them:

Start at the Library Catalog and do a Keyword search. After typing in a word or phrase, open the Limit to: pull-down menu and switch from Entire Collection to Periodicals/Serials. This retrieves journals whose content is closely related to your keywords, in addition to those with those keywords in the title.
Start at the Library Catalog and do a Periodicals title search. For example, typing "child development" will retrieve a list of journals with those words in the title.
For online journals only, click CSUN List of Electronic Periodicals at the bottom of the page. Then do a KEYWORD or TITLE search, or click on a letter for an alphabetical list of e-journals.

Online journals will be indicated by "online" or "electronic resource" (same thing). Click on the title for the call number of a print journal, or to access the full-text of an online journal.

Databases of Journal Articles

The best way to find articles on a specific topic is to search in a database, most of which index thousands of articles in hundreds of journals. Not all articles are available full-text online; some are in print only and some are not available from the Library except through interlibrary loan. Keep in mind that interlibrary loan items can take a week or two to arrive. To determine the availability of an article, click . Below are a few recommended databases for CADV. All require a valid student ID and password to be used from off-campus. They can be accessed either from Databases A-Z or from the Find Articles and Research Data link to Child + Adolescent Development.

ERIC – Educational Resources Information Center, produced by the U.S. Department of Education, for education and related fields. This database is available through 3 interfaces: EBSCO, CSA, and U.S. Department of Education.
PsycINFO -– produced by the American Psychological Association, for psychology and related fields. 98% of articles are from peer-reviewed journals.
PsycARTICLES -- database of full-text articles from journals published by the American Psychological Association. Much narrower coverage than PsycINFO, with only 60 journals (see Coverage list) compared to 2,250 in PsycINFO.

The above three databases are accessed through the EBSCOhost interface. See this webpage for tips on using EBSCO databases. Here are additional databases that may be useful to CADV students:

Health Reference Center Academic -- a collection of general interest health and fitness magazines, medical and professional periodicals, reference books and pamphlets. Designed for nursing and allied health students, as well as consumer health researchers.
RAND California -- a statistics and article database sponsored by RAND, a leading think tank. Click the Statistics link, then Health and Socioeconomic for local stats on child abuse, food stamps, welfare, etc. Click the Education link for stats on PreK-12 education. Click Research Publications to access the RAND library of online articles. For more information, see Using RAND California and/or try a RAND practice exercise.
Sociological Abstracts -- covers social structure, inequality, social change, social problems, etc.
Social Services Abstracts -- covers social work, human services, social welfare, social policy, etc.

For many of these databases, there are online user guides. Simply click next to it on the Databases A-Z list. For help in finding articles, contact the CADV librarian or visit the first-floor reference desk. Below are some general suggestions for searching databases.

Searching Tips & Tricks

When searching databases, the goal is to find a small number (e.g. 10-50) of articles relevant to your topic. Here are some tips for improving your search results:

Most databases allow you to choose a date range, so you can limit the search to recently-published articles only.
Most allow you to choose English articles only, which can further reduce your results.
Many also allow you to limit your results to peer-reviewed journals, which contain the highest-quality scholarly articles.
In keyword searching, a truncation symbol (usually *) expands your search by including various forms of a root word, e.g. adolescen* retrieves adolescent, adolescents, and adolescence. For more information, see Boolean Searching and Truncation.
Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) serve to either narrow or expand your search: OR expands it by including synonyms or related terms (e.g. adolescen* OR teen*); AND narrows it by finding the subset of articles that contain both search terms you want (exercise AND obesity); NOT narrows your search by eliminating articles that contain a specific term you do not want (child abuse NOT neglect). An easy way to remember the difference is the rhyme OR gives you MORE, while the other two operators give you less (although they may be better results).

Web Sites

In addition to books and journals, Web sites can be a valuable source of information as long as you use caution and judgment. For guidance in choosing Internet sources, see Evaluating Print and Internet Resources. The following Web sites are recommended:

Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore, publisher of the renown KIDS COUNT DATA BOOK. The 2007 edition, the 18th annual, is now available free online. Tracks benchmarks of child and family well-being in the U.S. over time. Includes interactive databases and display tools to create customized charts at the national, state, county, and city-level.

Child Care and Early Education Research Connections is an index to literature about children, birth through age 8 and--when addressing school-age child care--through age 13. Content includes the child care and early education workforce, parents and families, service settings, and early learning policies. Good source for statistics. Some full-text documents, but if not available, check the Library's catalog.

Children's Defense Fund is a long-time advocate for children, particularly poor and minority children and those with disabilities. Good source of free online information.

Congressional Research Service Reports, CRS is the public policy arm of Congress and does research for its members. Now many of its reports are available free online in PDF format through this searchable database from the University of North Texas. You can search or browse by subject, including the category "Children".

Forum on Child and Family Statistics (childstats.gov) is a working group of Federal agencies that collect, analyze, and report data on issues related to children and families. The Forum has partners from 22 Federal agencies as well as partners in private research organizations.

FPG Child Development Institute, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, also focuses on children from birth through age 8. It publishes technical assistance materials on topics such as quality child care, personnel preparation, parent leadership, transitions, and inclusion. Many documents are available free online in PDF format. Select the Products button on the right.

Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) is an advocacy group for members of the PreK-12 school community struggling with issues of sexual orientation and gender identity. The Educators Resources Page offers lesson plans, curricular tools, information on teacher trainings, a list of local chapters and student clubs, a library of free online resources, and a book shop.

Go Ask Alice from Columbia University. Answers teens' questions about relationships; sexuality; sexual health; emotional health; fitness; nutrition; alcohol, nicotine, and other drugs; and general health.

KidsHealth from the Nemours Foundation. Doctor-approved health information about children from before birth through adolescence, with separate areas for kids, teens, and parents.

Kids Off the Couch is designed to pique the interest of media-addicted youngsters by linking cultural activities in the L.A. area to a related movie. Subscribers to this free service receive weekly emails with a suggested "Popcorn Adventure", including a lesson plan with discussion questions, tips for parents, and facts about the movie/activity.

MedlinePlus from the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. Excellent source of consumer-level information on many diseases and conditions, with categories for Children and for Teenagers. Also provides links to MEDLINE searches, a medical encyclopedia and dictionary, Spanish-languange materials, prescription and nonprescription drugs, and numerous links to other websites.

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) (http://www.naeyc.org/ece/) promotes educational services for children from birth through age 8. It administers a prestigious accreditation system for preschools, kindergartens, and child care centers. Good source of information on critical issues, research and reports, etc.

Teaching Tolerance from the Southern Poverty Law Center. Provides educators with free educational materials that promote respect for differences and appreciation of diversity. There is also content for kids, teens, and parents. Publisher of the award-winning magazine Teaching Tolerance (http://www.tolerance.org/teach/magazine/index.jsp).

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has a Families & Children Web page and an online Reference Collection. The HHS Administration for Children and Families also offers statistics, data, research, and publications http://www.acf.hhs.gov/.

Writing Help

To help you get started on class papers, there is a handy worksheet entitled Preparation for Research (MS Word).

The Library has a Sample Style Sheet for APA Bibliographic Citations (PDF). There are also many books to help you write and format your papers. The best known is the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition, BF76.7.P83 2001. Copies are available for use in the library at these locations: first floor Reference Desk and Reference Room shelves, fourth floor Reserve Desk and Reserve Room shelves. Other useful books include:

Concise rules of APA style BF76.7 .C66 2005 Reference Desk. This easy-to-use pocket guide, at $26.95, is less expensive than the big manual http://www.apastyle.org/
How to prepare a research article in APA style BF76.7.A54 2002 Reference Room
Pocket guide to APA style BF76.7 .P426 2004 Reference Desk
The world's easiest guide to using the APA BF76.7.A52 2002 Reference Room

Note: As a researcher and writer, you must comply with copyright laws and CSUN's plagiarism policy. Plagiarism is defined as "intentionally or knowingly representing the words, ideas, or work of another as one's own in any academic exercise." Read the Library's webpage Why cite? Avoiding plagiarism.

Books

Browsing: Because Child and Adolescent Development is an interdisciplinary field, relevant books are located in several places in the Oviatt Library. You may want to browse the call numbers below; remember to also look in the first floor Reference Room. Reference books (with green dot) cannot be checked out.

BF 712-724 (psychology/developmental)
HQ 503-1064 (sociology/family and parenting)
LB 1100-1500 (education/educational psychology)
RJ 1-570 (pediatrics/physical and mental health)

Searching: Use the Library Catalog to find specific books on a topic. Start with a KEYWORD search, e.g. "play". From the list of titles displayed, click on any one for more information. From here, you may switch to a SUBJECT search by clicking the links listed alongside Subject, e.g. Play therapy or Play -- Psychological aspects. This will take you to a list of relevant Library of Congress subject headings which you may also want to explore. (Read more about Finding Books Using the Library of Congress Classification.) To determine if a particular title is available, look under Status. A due date will appear if the book is currently checked out.

TCC: Items labeled "TCC" under Location are in the Teacher Curriculum Center. It is located on the lower level of the Library; however, you must enter by the stairway on the first floor of the Library behind and to the right of the Reference Desk. the TCC features a collection of teacher-oriented materials, including educational games, teaching kits, recordings, videotapes, DVD's, etc. Most are listed in the Library Catalog; these items must be checked out and returned directly to the TCC. There is also a Web page with Child Development Resources.

Here is a sampling of reference books in the Oviatt Library, some of which are also available online:

Adolescence in America: an encyclopedia / Jacqueline V. Lerner and Richard M. Lerner HQ796 .A33247 2001 Reference Room, 2 volumes (also in electronic form )

Child development / edited by Neil J. Salkind HQ772 .C436 2002 Reference Room (also an electronic book)

Encyclopedia of applied developmental science / editors, Celia B. Fisher, Richard M. Lerner HQ 767.84 .E52 2005 Reference Room

Encyclopedia of children and childhood: in history and society / edited by Paula S. Fass 2004 (electronic book only)

Encyclopedia of education and human development / Stephen J. Farenga and Daniel Ness, editors. LB15 .E473 2005 Reference Room, 3 volumes

Handbook of child psychology / editors-in-chief, William Damon and Richard M. Lerner. 2006 BF721 .H242 2006 Reference Room, 4 volumes

Handbook of preventive interventions for children and adolescents / Lisa A. Rapp-Paglicci, Catherine N. Dulmus, John S. Wodarski RJ101 .H16 2004 Reference Room

Handbook of research on the education of young children / edited by Bernard Spodek, Olivia N. Saracho. LB1119 .H25 2006 Reference Room

Recommend Books & DVD/Videos

The Oviatt Library is always looking for materials to add to its collection. If you discover a book that would support the CADV curriculum, please forward the title and author to mara.houdyshell@csun.edu.

Also, if you find a good video or DVD about human development, please let us know that too. Use the online Video/DVD Purchase Recommendation Form and include distributor information, if possible.

More Information

For information about Library resources to support studies in Early Childhood Education, see the Web page for Early Childhood Resources.
Statistics about children and families is found on librarian Mary Finley's Web page Government Statistics for Social Work Research
See also the Psychology Research Guide and the Educational Psychology & Counseling 602: Research Principles
Read the Library's webpage How to do Library & Internet Research
For help finding Library materials, come to the Reference Desk (but first check Hours of Service)
Get a virtual answer to your question (same day) by Email or Live Chat (real time)
Browse the Student Guide to the Oviatt Library (large PDF)
Faculty: discover the array of Services for Faculty and browse the Faculty Guide to the Oviatt Library (large PDF)
Users with disabilities: learn about Oviatt Library's Services for Users with Disabilities

CADV Librarian

Mara Houdyshell is the CSUN librarian who serves the Department of Child & Adolescent Development. Her home page is http://library.csun.edu/mhoudyshell/. Contact her at mara.houdyshell@csun.edu or 818-677-3840..