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1. Check the journal name. Sometimes these explicitly include “Sociology” or Sociological”, however, there are sociological journals that don’t have “sociology” in their name (i.e., Journal of Marriage and Families). Sociological research is published in related or interdisciplinary fields, such as criminology; in this case, you can look at the journal’s website to see if it is sociological.
2. Check the subject terms assigned to the article by the database (to ensure the use of sociological terms. If a variation on sociological terms is present, a good argument can be made that the article is sociological). You can find these in the record for the article.
3. Check the author’s institutional affiliation (whether they are working in a sociological department or not).
4. Look for the presence and use of sociological perspectives (i.e. The sociological imagination) as well as for the use of sociological theories (functionalism, interactionism, Marxism-conflict theory, feminism, and post-modern/post-structural).
5. Look at the subject area of the author for terms like sociology, sociological perspective
Thanks to Dr. Sandra Colavecchia, Greg Neapen, and Jennifer Easter for their work in developing this checklist for recognizing sociological work.
American Journal of Economics and Sociology Vol. 1, 1941 to the present (online)
American Journal of Sociology Vol. 1, 1895 to the present (online)
American Sociological Review Vol. 1, 1936 to the present (online)
American Sociologist Vol. 1, 1965 to Vol. 37, 2006 (print). Vol. 18, 1987 to the present (online)
Canadian Ethnic Studies Vol. 1, 1969 to the present (online)
Canadian Journal of Sociology Vol. 1, 1975 to the present (online)
Canadian Review of Sociology Vol. 29, 1992 to the present (online)
Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology Vol. 1, 1964 to Vol. 44, 2007 (print). Vol. 36, 1999 to Vol. 44, 2007 (online).
Canadian Social Trends 1986 to the present (print). 1995 to the present (online)
Comparative Studies in Society and History Vol. 1, 1958 to the present (online)
Contemporary Sociology Vol. 1, 1972 to the present (online)
Current Sociology Vol. 31, 1983 to Vol. 52, 2004 (print). Vol 47, 1999 to the present (online)
Directions: Research Reviews from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation 2008 to 2011 (print). Call no. F1035 A1 D57
International Review for the Sociology of Sport Vol. 19,1984) to Vol. 30, 1995 (print). Vol. 34 (1999) to present (online)
Journal of Social History Vol. 1, 1967/68 to the present (online)
Journal of Social Issues Vol. 1, 1945 to Vol. 63, 2007 (print). Vol. 51, 1995 to present (online)
Social Forces Vol. 1, 1922 to the present (online)
Social Policy Vol. 2, 1971/72 to Vol. 38, 2007/08 (print). Vol. 21, 1990 to present (online)
Social Problems Vol. 1, 1953 to Vol. 55, 2008 (online)
Social Research Vol. 1, 1934 to the present (online)
Society Vol. 1, 1963 to the present (online)
Sociological Inquiry Vol. 31, 1961 to the present (online)
Sociological Quarterly Vol. 1, 1960 to the present (online)
Sociological Theory Vol. 1, 1983 to the present (online)
Sociology of Religion Vol. 1, 1940 to the present (online)
Work and Occupations Vol. 10, 1983 to Vol. 31, 2004 (print). Vol. 26, 1999 to present (online)
If you are unsure whether an article is available in full text or not, please click on the 'Check for full text...' link closest to the citation to check if the full text is available at MSVU. The 'Check for full text...' link will check to see if the article is available in another database, or to see if the library has a copy of the article in print. If the article is not available at MSVU please look at our document delivery options.