ALL ABOUT: Getting to Know Your Field

Database note: Some of the links on this page direct to the University of Kentucky Libraries' databasesLinks to an external site..

Who should I talk to?

Reach out to your colleagues:

• Start with people you know

  Ask your professors for names of major scholars and reading recommendations.

• Contact people you don’t know

  You may get no response, or you may make a connection that lasts for the rest of your career. Engage with scholars as colleagues and ask for help in their area of expertise. Start with a brief message. You could ask for recommendations for hard-to-search topics, advice on methods, or specific feedback on your research ideas.

Contact additional experts:

• Subject librarians and department liaisons

  These experts are familiar with databases, top publishers, and other resources. They will know how best to navigate them. You can always ask a library’s general help desk to connect you to the appropriate library subject expert.

  University of Kentucky Librarians by subject Links to an external site.

• Fellowships offices and writing centers

  Staff can help you identify and apply for funding to help support different stages of research, language study, and travel. These offices go by many different names: search for grants, research funding, scholarships, fellowships, or writing tutors. Professional and funding organizations may have additional support and tips available. 

Follow the conversation via social media and/or RSS Links to an external site. feeds from:

• Individual scholars or labs
• Major professional organizations
• Top journals
• Academic departments, institutes, and research centers
• Conference/event hashtags

What is the shape of this field?

Take advantage of tertiary sources

Tertiary sources are academic publications whose intention is to summarize.

• Scholarly introductions, companions, guides, handbooks, etc.
• Encyclopedias, dictionaries, and bibliographies
• Review articles, literature reviews, and/or meta-analyses
• Guides to research methods

  Our recommendation: Sage Research Methods Online Links to an external site.

Troubleshoot your vocabulary

The words you use to describe your field or subfield may not be the best for searching. Do a broad search for your field and notice how your field is described in your search results. Pay attention to words that describe  broader areas of study and narrower subfields.

Tip: Use Wikipedia to find more formal, general, or established names for your areas of study (e.g. “crip theory Links to an external site.” redirects to Disability Studies).

Identify top journals and influential works

• References listed in tertiary sources will cite many different works. Consider searching for journals included in these references.

  Our recommendation: Oxford Bibliographies Online Links to an external site.

• Your librarian may be aware of field-specific rankings and directories.
• Use metrics such as impact factor Links to an external site. and h-index Links to an external site. to guide you to your field’s top journals.

  More details: How can I measure the impact or importance of a journal article or book? Links to an external site. (Harvard library FAQ)

Find summaries embedded in other academic publications

• Introductory chapters to major monographs
• Prefaces to later editions
• Literature review sections of journal articles
• Academic book reviews (many academic journals have book reviews)
• Notes & bibliographies in major works or recent dissertations
• Use full-text search (e.g. Google Books or Google Scholar) to find mentions of seminal works.

  E.g. seminal machine learning Links to an external site., foundational trauma studies Links to an external site., touchstone particle physics Links to an external site., influential lesbian ethnography, Links to an external site.landmark choreography history Links to an external site.

What are the emerging topics in this field?

• Conferences

  If you can’t attend, stay informed via calls for papers, conference programs, and conference hashtags

• Recent dissertations and theses

  Our recommendation: Dissertations & Theses Full-Text database Links to an external site.

• New issues of major journals

  Stay up to date with new issues and browse their table of contents

  Our recommendation: BrowZine Links to an external site.

• Receive alerts

  You can sign up to receive alerts from publishers, journals, or databases (email or RSS)

  Our recommendation: JournalTOCs Links to an external site. and Feedly Links to an external site.

• Annual reviews

  These reviews are also sometimes called “The Year’s Work in…”

  Our recommendation: Annual Reviews database Links to an external site.