English: 76-107 - Writing about Data: Locating Data

The next step is locating data.  This page should get you started with locating data in various types of publications.

Data can be found in the following types of writing:

1. Reports from governmental or private organizations

2. Surveys or census

3. In journal articles

Searching for these sources also depends on whether you need broad data, covering larger populations,  or detailed data, covering focus groups and regional or local populations.  Keep the BEAM framework in mind when you are looking for this data: Background, Exhibit, Argument, and Method sources.  

For example, the first type of sources you can find in Reports and Census, while the last three tend to be buried in journal articles.

Below, you'll find strategies and source suggestions for finding these sources, including internet searching tips:

Background Sources: To search for these sources, it's best to look for specific types of sources like census, reports, or even books on a topic:

For example, to find national education data, I might try to use Advanced Search to look in our library catalog by looking for:
[subject] contains education AND Title] data OR statistics

Here are some results worth looking at:

Exhibit, Argument, & Method Sources:

Similarly, you can use search terms to locate articles and sources on various topics (Subject searches) with various words (Keyword searches) for specific aspects (material types such as reports, cases, populations, geographic locations, demographics, etc.).

Here are some of the core databases you can search for information on Technology.

Related Guides:

These research guides can lead you to additional information sources: