Reference materials like dictionaries and encyclopedias provide important background information for understanding your topics. If you can't clearly define the theories you are researching, you won't be able to understand the scholarly research.
Use these materials before you start reading articles, and then revisit them when concepts are unclear.
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Survey Research Methods by This link opens in a new window
The SAGE Encyclopedia of Social Science Research Methods by This link opens in a new windowNeed a definition for a sociological concept and don't know which one to trust? Use these dictionaries with confidence.
The Blackwell Dictionary of Sociology by 
A Dictionary of Sociology by Look beyond Wikipedia with these excellent scholarly resources that will help you more fully understand key sociological concepts and theories.
The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology by 
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences by 
