LibGuides: Development Studies: Databases

Databases

On this page you find a selection of databases that will be most relevant to Development Studies.

Please note that due to the multidisciplinary nature of Development Studies, there are also many general databases available at the EUR/ISS Library that will be of use.

For an overview of ALL international development-related databases you can see the A-Z list: Development Studies
For a FULL list of our databases please see the A-Z list of databases.

Discipline-specific databases

International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS) This link opens in a new window
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Database with bibliographic references to journal articles, books, reviews and selected chapters in the subject areas of anthropology, economics, political science and sociology. It is unique in its broad coverage of international material and incorporates over 100 languages and countries.
One of the unique benefits of IBSS is its extensive coverage of international material with over 50% of journals published outside the US or UK and with 25% of references in languages other than English. Records include material from 100 countries and in 60 languages.

Platform: ProQuest
Date range: 1951 - present
Sociological Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Core resource for researchers, professionals, and students in sociology and related disciplines. It includes citations and abstracts from over 1,800 journals, relevant dissertations, selected books and book chapters, and association papers, as well as citations for book reviews and other media.
Some records published since 2001 contain references cited, sometimes with links to additional materials. Entries cover sociological aspects of twenty-nine broad topics, including anthropology, business, collective behavior, community development, disaster studies, education, environmental studies, gender studies, gerontology, law and penology, marriage and family studies, medicine and health, racial interactions, social psychology, social work, sociological theory, stratification, substance abuse, urban studies, and violence.

Platform: ProQuest
Related databases: Social Science Citation Index (via Web of Science); Social Services Abstracts
AnthroSource This link opens in a new window
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AnthroSource contains full-text journals and newsletters published by the American Anthropological Association.
Econlit (via ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
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International bibliographical database for economists.
Platform: ProQuest
Africa-Wide Information This link opens in a new window
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A unique, multidisciplinary index to research and publications by Africans and about Africa. Produced by NISC South Africa, it combines dozens of databases sourced from Africa, Europe and North America.
Covers subject areas such as agriculture, culture, development, economics, health, history, industry, law, literature, politics, and more. Contains a variety of languages, and references to journals, books, popular magazines, newspapers, government publications, grey literature, dissertations, music recordings, and radio and television broadcasts.
International Political Science Abstracts This link opens in a new window
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Indexes world's leading journals in political science from journals published from 1951 to the present. Searchable in multiple languages.
Platform: EBSCOhost
Date range: 1951 - present
CIAO : Columbia International Affairs Online This link opens in a new window
Materials on international politics and related fields, including security studies, global finance, diplomatic practice, humanitarian law, global governance, development studies, and environmental studies. Includes working papers, policy briefs, and current analysis and commentary, as well as scholarly journal articles, e-books, and videos.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
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Multidisciplinary archive of full-text articles of the most important academic journals. Also contains a large collection of ebooks (book chapters) and primary source materials.

Date range: In general journals have been indexed from the first issue. Please note that for most journals the last three to five years are not available via JSTOR (the moving wall embargo).

The EUR subscribes to the collections
- Arts & Sciences I, II, III, IV, VI, VII and IX
- Business I
- Health & General Sciences

General citation databases

By using a citation database you can follow a particular cited reference forward in time to find more current articles that have also cited that research. Searching for cited references is useful to locate current research based on earlier research, see how a particular research topic is being used to support other research or track the history of a research topic.

Scopus This link opens in a new window
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Scopus is a multidisciplinary abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature (journals and books). The search results also contain links to preprints (2017 onwards) and research data.
Date range: 1788 - 1970 (abstracts included where available); 1970 - present (records including references)
Related databases: Web of Science, Dimensions
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
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Web of Science is a citation database, covering academic journals worldwide in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities, and conference proceedings. It provides cover-to-cover indexing, from 1975 till present.
The EUR license to Web of Science Core Collection consists of:
- Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) --1975-present
- Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) --1975-present
- Arts & Humanities Citation Index (A&HCI) --1975-present
- Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (CPCI-S) --1990-present
- Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Social Science & Humanities (CPCI-SSH) --1990-present
- Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) --2005-present
Date range: 1975 - present
Related databases: Scopus, Dimensions

Free databases

Free databases can be useful to find non-Western literature that is underrepresented in subscription databases. They are also a good alternative for non-EUR staff and students, alumni, and others who want to search for academic literature.

Scilit
Scilit is a multidisciplinary, free scholarly database that indexes scientific material by extracting the latest data from CrossRef, PubMed and other sources on a daily basis.
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Scilit - developed and maintained by MDPI - also includes pre-prints. It has an advanced search option and has the option to export references.
SciELO
SciELO is a bibliographic database and digital library of open access journals. It was created to meet the scientific communication needs of developing countries and provides an efficient way to increase visibility and access to scientific literature.
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There are 16 countries in the SciELO network and its journal collections: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Uruguay, and Venezuela. It has an advanced search option and has the option to export references in bulk.
African Journals Online
African Journals OnLine (AJOL) is the world's largest and preeminent platform of African-published scholarly journals.
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AJOL is a Non-Profit Organisation that (since 1998) works to increase global & continental online access, awareness, quality & use of African-published, peer-reviewed research.

Migration Research Hub This link opens in a new window
The Migration Research Hub brings together experts, publications, datasets, and projects about migration. The taxonomy systemizes knowledge on migration.
The Migration Research Hub was built during the IMISCOE-led Horizon 2020 project, CrossMigration (2018-2020).
SprINg Evidence Repository This link opens in a new window
Database for information on migrant integration, inclusion and participation in Europe. The SprINg evidence repository helps policymakers, service providers and advocates work with migrants to make their policies and practices more evidence-based, by summarizing scientific studies on policies and practices of integration in the European Union from 2011 till 2022.
The SprINg evidence repository includes themes like: Rights and legal status, Employment, Education and Training, Housing and Settlement, Access to Welfare, Health Care, Crime, Family Relations, Identity and Belonging, Attitudes Towards Migrants, and Civic Participation.
The database is created by the SPRING team of Erasmus University Rotterdam, Danube University Krems and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).