Research Guides: Sociology Research Guide: Internet Resources

Website Evaluation Tips

Check out these tips when deciding to use an online source. Always be skeptical.

Authority: Who is responsible for creating the web page? Is there a publisher or sponsor of the web page? Can you find information about the author and publisher?
Audience: Who is this web site created for? Is the content geared towards an age group or population group?
Accuracy: How does the information compare to other sources?
Content: What is the content of the web site: images, articles, a blog? The type of domain (.edu, .gov, .org) may provide some clues about the information. Can you detect a bias? Are there cited references?
Currency: How recent is the web site? Is there information on when it was last updated?

U.S. Census Data
A centralized platform for accessing data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Includes information on how to access and use available data.
Federal Reserve Economic Database (FRED)
An online database consisting of hundreds of thousands of economic data time series from scores of national, international, public, and private sources. Combines data with a mix of tools designed to help the user understand, interact with, display, and disseminate the data.
Statista
Direct access to quantitative data on media, business, finance, politics, and a wide variety of other areas of interest, categorized into 21 market sectors. Statista integrates data on over 80,000 topics from over 18,000 sources onto a single platform.
UN Demographic Yearbook
The United Nations Demographic Yearbook collects, compiles and disseminates official statistics on a wide range of topics, including population size and composition, births, deaths, marriage and divorce on an annual basis. Demographic Yearbook special topics issues cover a wide range of additional topics including economic activity, educational attainment, household characteristics, housing, ethnicity and language, among others.
UNdata
Search global economic, demographic and social, environment and energy, and gender data disseminated by the United Nations.
World Bank Open Data
Free and open access to data about development in countries around the globe, including education and gender statistics. Provided by the World Bank.
CIA World Factbook
Information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities published by the CIA.

Digital Commons Network: Sociology
The Digital Commons Network brings together free, full-text scholarly articles from hundreds of universities and colleges worldwide. Curated by university librarians and their supporting institutions, the Network includes a growing collection of peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, dissertations, working papers, conference proceedings, and other original scholarly work.
The Green Book
Published by the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Ways and Means, provides background material and data on the programs within the Committee's jurisdiction, including social security, Medicare, welfare, child support, and more.
The Society Pages
An open-access social science project headquartered in the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. Features articles on important topics, research briefs, clippings of social science in the media, and blogs written by social scientists in academia.
Library of Congress Country Studies
This collection contains the electronic versions of 80 books previously published as part of the Country Studies Series by the Federal Research Division. Intended for a general audience, books in the series present a description and analysis of the historical setting and the social, economic, political, and national security systems and institutions of select countries throughout the world.
Cultural Anthropology Tutorials
Features tutorials on various important topics in cultural anthropology created by Dr. Dennis O'Neil of Palomar College. Please note that this archived version of the website may not provide full multimedia functionality.

Professional Organizations & Career Resources for Sociology

Occupational Outlook Handbook: Sociologists
Learn about sociologists' work environment, pay, job outlook, and more in this resource from the U.S. Department of Labor.
O*NET Summary Report: Sociologists
Learn more about sociology as a career, including required skills and education, work environment, and employment trends.
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Website sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor.
American Sociological Association: Data About the Discipline
Explore the ASA's research on trends within its organization and the discipline of sociology. Also provides information on educational and career prospects for those interested in sociology.
Eastern Sociological Association
This regional organization is the largest professional organization for sociologists in the Northeast.