LibGuides: Civic Literacy and Engagement: Researching Civic Engagement

Introduction

If you are interested in researching topics related to civic engagement like voter participation, voter rights, elections, and more check out these resources.

Below you will find some general interdisciplinary databases that would be good places to start.

JSTOR (Journal Storage Archive) This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary eJournal platform that provides complete back runs of journals in the following licensed collections: Arts & Sciences I-IV and VII, Life Sciences, Plant Sciences, Current Scholarship and Early Journal Content. On the JSTOR platform.
Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary indexing/full-text database that covers scholarly journal articles back to 1975. On the EBSCOhost platform.

Databases

iPoll This link opens in a new window
A database containing public opinion survey data collected by Roper.
Legislative Insight This link opens in a new window
Political science full-text database collection that includes government publications generated in the course of congressional lawmaking. On the ProQuest platform.
Making of Modern Law: U.S. Supreme Court Records and Briefs, 1832-1978 This link opens in a new window
Legal full-text database providing court records and briefs from 1832 to 1978. Part of the Making of Modern Law collection on the Gale platform.
Meet the Press This link opens in a new window
Meet the Press from Alexander Street makes over 1,500 hours of footage—the full surviving broadcast run to date—available online in one cross-searchable interface.
Policy File Index This link opens in a new window
Policy File Index is a unique resource for U.S. public policy research in that it grants users access to timely, updated information from over 350 public policy think tanks, nongovernmental organizations, research institutes, university centers, advocacy groups, and other entities.
Political Science Database This link opens in a new window
Political science indexing/full-text database that covers journal articles back to 1985. On the ProQuest platform.

Government Document Databases

Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (1976-present) This link opens in a new window
U.S. government document indexing/full-text database that covers publications from all federal agencies back to 1976. On the GPO platform.
U.S. Congressional Serial Set (on Library of Congress American Memory site) This link opens in a new window
Government indexing/full-text database that includes House and Senate documents and reports back to the 15th Congress (1817). On the Library of Congress American Memory platform.
U.S. Congressional Serial Set House and Senate Journals (Readex) This link opens in a new window
Searchable database containing House and Senate journals, Series 1, 1789-1817. On the Readex platform.
U.S. Declassified Documents This link opens in a new window
Full text of Presidential, Executive Branch, and Congressional documents since World War II declassified under the Freedom of Information Act. Subjects include foreign relations, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, civil rights movement, assassinations, etc. On the Gale platform.

Books

The administration of voter registration : expanding the electorate across and within the states
Ebook published in 2021 by Merivaki, Thessalia This book examines the dynamics behind shifts in voter registration rates across the states and adopts a framework of collaborative governance with election administration at its center.
Change and continuity in the 2020 elections
Published in 2022 by Aldrich, John H., 1947- author.; Carson, Jamie L., author.; Gomez, Brad T., 1970- author.; Merolla, Jennifer Lee, 1975- author "Readers will critically analyze a variety of variables such as the presidential and congressional elections, voter turnout, and the social forces, party loyalties, and prominent issues that affect voting behavior. Readers will walk away with a better understanding of this groundbreaking election and what those results mean for the future of American politics"
One Person, One Vote: A Surprising History of Gerrymandering in America
Published in 2022 by Nick Seabrook. This book covers "how our elections have been rigged through redistricting, beginning with the Founding Fathers, Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, and Reconstruction, and extending to the twentieth century’s gerrymandering battles at the Supreme Court and today’s high-tech manipulations of election districts."