LibGuides: Gender, women, sexuality, masculinity and feminism: E-resources

Search Summon discovery service

Search Summon to find online journal articles and book chapters.

Key databases

In addition to the resources listed here, gender is covered in a wide range of other databases; see our list of databases by subject for more details.

American National Biography [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Biographies of more than 19,000 men and women, from all eras and walks of life, whose lives have shaped the American nation.
Help and guidance
Help using American National Biography
Archives Unbound This link opens in a new window
Archives Unbound contains more than 250 collections covering: African American studies; American Indian studies; Asian studies; British history; Holocaust studies; LGBTQ studies; Latin American and Caribbean studies; Middle East studies; political science; religious studies; and women’s studies.
Arts and Humanities Citation Index This link opens in a new window
References to published materials in the arts and humanities including journal articles, letters, editorials and reviews.

This database is part of the Web of Science Core Collection. To search just this part select 'Arts & Humanities Citation Index' from the 'Editions' drop down list.
Gives references to journal articles, letters, editorials, notes, meeting abstracts, discussions, music scores, poems, plus reviews of literature, performances and recordings. Covers 1970-

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) This link opens in a new window
References to research documents, journal articles, and other materials covering education.
Help and guidance
EBSCOhost user guide
IBSS (International Bibliography of the Social Sciences) This link opens in a new window
Gives references to journal articles, books, reviews and selected chapters in subjects including anthropology, economics, political science and sociology.
Also covers related subjects, such as: agriculture, social policy, archaeology, business studies, criminology, education, environmental issues, history, law, and social work.

Gives references to journal articles, books, reviews and selected chapters. Good coverage of international material.

Help and guidance
ProQuest LibGuide: IBSS
International Historical Statistics Online This link opens in a new window
International Historical Statistics is a large collection of statistical data from around the world, covering a wide range of socio-economic topics. The collection includes data on the Americas and Europe, but also hard-to-find data on Africa, Asia and Oceania.
Subjects covered include:

-Agriculture
-Currency
-Education, schools, universities, higher education
-Energy
-Finance
-Government expenditure and national accounts
-Industry
-Labour force
-Migration
-Population
-Trade, imports and exports
-TV and radio
-Unemployment
-Wholesale and consumer prices
JSTOR [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Archive of journal articles covering most subjects.

Please read the JSTOR terms and conditions of use before accessing JSTOR. You may not download an entire issue of a journal from the JSTOR database or keep multiple electronic or paper copies of any article. You may not alter or distribute any Content, including but not limited to transmission via email to another computer.
Full-text archive of journal articles covering most subjects. Covers 1880s up to a 'moving wall' usually of between 2 and 5 years. Each journal title has its own 'moving wall'.

We subscribe to the following JSTOR packages: Arts & Sciences I-XI, Biological Sciences, Health & General Sciences and Ireland Collection.

We also subscribe to the 19th Century British Pamphlets collection.

Help and guidance
JSTOR help page for searching
Lexis+ [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Formerly LexisLibrary.

UK, US, EU and Commonwealth legal sources.

To access content you may be prompted to enter your full name and agree to Lexis' terms and conditions
Full-text of UK, US, EU and Commonwealth legal sources. Contents include:

-UK cases including The Law Reports, All England Law Reports, and English Reports
-Cases of the Irish, Northern Ireland, and Scottish Courts from 1945.
-All current Public General Acts and Statutory Instruments of England and Wales
-Halsbury's Laws of England
-Hill and Redman Law of Landlord and Tenant
-European Union cases from 1954
-European Union legislation
-Commonwealth cases and legislation, particularly from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa
-US Federal and State case law
-US Federal legislation
-Comprehensive collection of US law reviews from 1982
-UK broadsheets as well as local newspapers in the UK

Help and guidance
-For comprehensive guidance see the LexisLibrary support site which includes training videos, tips and user guides.
-A range of training videos are available on the LexisNexis UK YouTube channel.
-Complete the LexisLibrary research certificate.
Mass Observation Online [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Mass Observation Online gives an insight into everyday life in Britain from 1937 until the mid-1950s. It contains original manuscript and typescript papers created and collected by the Mass Observation organisation, as well as printed publications, photographs and interactive features.
Help and guidance
Once connected, click on 'Help' for page-by-page guidance and FAQs.
MEDLINE on PubMed This link opens in a new window
References to journal articles in the biomedical sciences. Covers 1950 to the present day. Includes 'In press' articles.
We also have access to PubMed on Web of Science from 1950 to the present day.

It gives references to journal articles in the biomedical sciences including: biotechnology and bioengineering; clinical medicine; drugs and toxicology; forensic medicine; health affairs; non-clinical aspects of health care; psychiatry. Covers 1950 to the present day.

Help and guidance
Help using PubMed
To save searches and set up alerts, you will need to use a third-party sign-in option, such as Facebook or Google. It is not possible to use your University login credentials for this purpose.
MLA (Modern Language Association International Bibliography) This link opens in a new window
References to publications covering literature, language, linguistics and folklore worldwide.
MLA (Modern Language Association International Bibliography) covers literature, language, linguistics and folklore worldwide.

Gives references to journal articles, monographs, working papers, conference proceedings, indexes and bibliographies, etc.

Covers 1884-. Hosted on the EBSCO platform.

Help and guidance
EBSCOhost user guide
Orlando Women's Writing in the British Isles [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Covering women’s writing in the British Isles from its beginnings to the present day, Orlando provides entries on authors' lives and writing careers, contextual material, timelines, sets of internal links, and bibliographies.
Help and guidance
There is information on how to use the database in the "Get Started" tab of the about section.
Oxford Bibliographies This link opens in a new window
Searchable research guides across a variety of subject areas.
Bibliographies currently subscribed to are:

-Atlantic history
-Classics
-Medieval studies
-Philosophy
-Renaissance and Reformation
-Victorian literature

Individual articles are listed on the Library catalogue.

Help and guidance
Oxford Bibliographies help
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Biographies of the men and women who shaped all aspects of Britain's past, from the fourth century BC to the year 2000.
Help and guidance
Oxford DNB Help
Project MUSE [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Access to articles in over 500 journal titles in arts, humanities and social sciences.
View a list of titles available on Project Muse (you will need to be on-campus or logged in via the off-campus link above to view this list).

Complements JSTOR by providing recent issues of many titles in that archive.

Help and guidance
Project MUSE video tutorials and search guides
PsycINFO This link opens in a new window
Gives references to journal articles, books and chapters in psychology and psychological aspects of related disciplines including education, linguistics, medicine, and physiology. Includes links to full-text articles in PsycARTICLES.
Gives references to journal articles, books and book chapters.
Routledge Historical Resources: History of Feminism [full-text] This link opens in a new window
This resource provides materials on feminism (covering the period 1776-1928) published by Taylor & Francis. It includes primary and secondary sources, such as full books, selected chapters, and journal articles, as well as thematic essays.
Help and guidance
Take a tour of Routledge Historical Resources: History of Feminism
Science Citation Index This link opens in a new window
References to publications in the sciences. Part of the Web of Science Core Collection.

This database is part of the Web of Science Core Collection. To search just this part select 'Science Citation index' from the 'Editions' drop down list.
Covers natural, physical, and biomedical science and technology, including: Agriculture; Biology including plant sciences and zoology; Biotechnology; Chemistry and biochemistry; Computer science; Materials science; Mathematics; Medicine including pharmacology; Neuroscience; Physics; and Veterinary science.

References to journal articles, reports, papers, discussions, editorials, notes, reviews and other items.

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Scopus This link opens in a new window
Gives references to journal articles, books, conference proceedings and patents in all subjects. Also offers extensive tools to analyse results, and measure impact for articles, journals and authors.
Scopus gives references to peer-reviewed literature in all subject areas. It includes journal articles (including 'in press' items), books, conference proceedings and patents.

It is possible to search for topics, authors (including by ORCID ID), author affiliation and funders.

Extensive analytical tools also allow you to:

-analyse your search results by year, source, author, affiliation, country or territory, document type and subject area
-compare journal impact to help you decide where to publish
-see the citation impact and scholarly community engagement for an article
-analyse the citation trend for any given article, set of results or for a list of author documents
-view an author profile to analyse and track an individual's citation history

Help and guidance
Scopus Quick Reference Guide (PDF)
Tutorial of creating alerts
Scopus learn & support site
Screen Studies Collection [partial full-text] This link opens in a new window
Gives references, and some full-text access, to sources relating to film and television.
Search simultaneously across the following databases:

-FIAF International Index to Film Periodicals Database - Gives references to journal articles and access to the full-text of several journals. Also includes information about holdings of silent films in international film archives, and a directory of film and tv collections held by institutions worldwide.

-Film Index International (FII) – International index of films from the first silent movies to the latest blockbusters. Gives biographical information for almost 57,000 personalities. Also includes coverage of international film awards and prizes as well as searchable plot summaries and full cast and crew lists. References to published reviews and articles about individual films are also included within the records.

-AFI Catalog - The American Film Institute's catalogue is a comprehensive filmography of American films from 1893 to 1974, with records for selected major films from 1975-2008. New records are added each year by the AFI’s editorial team. Useful for identifying sources and reviews.

Help and guidance
Guide to using FIAF
Guide to using Film Index International
Guide to using the American Film Institute Catalogue
Social Sciences Citation Index This link opens in a new window
Gives references to journal articles in the social sciences.

This database is part of the Web of Science Core Collection. To search just this part select 'Social Sciences Citation Index' from the 'Editions' drop down list.
Includes: Anthropology; History; Industrial relations; Law ; Linguistics; Philosophy; Political science ; Psychology and psychiatry; Public health; Social issues; Social work; Sociology; Urban studies; Women's studies.

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Use to search across a number of databases covering a range of subject areas. Provides references to journal articles, books, conference papers, patents, research data and other materials.

Web of Science gives access to a range of databases which can be searched individually or simultaneously:

-BIOSIS Previews - biological sciences
-Current Contents Connect
-Data Citation Index - research data from international repositories
-Derwent Innovations Index - patents in engineering
-FSTA (Food Science and Technology Abstracts)
-Medline - biomedical sciences
-Web of Science Core Collection - made up of the Arts and Humanities, Science, and Social Sciences Citation Indexes, plus a number of other databases

The cross-search also includes open access journals and open archive repositories.

Also available via Web of Science:

-JCR (Journal Citation Reports)

Help and guidance
Web of Science Training Portal
Westlaw UK [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Full-text of UK, US EU and Commonwealth legal sources.
Contents include:

- UK cases, including The Law Reports, Weekly Law Reports and English Reports
- Fully consolidated laws in force, including Acts from 1267 and Statutory Instruments from 1948.
- European Union cases from 1954
- European Union legislation
- Index to British legal journals from 1986 (with links to full-text where hosted on Westlaw UK)
- Full-text British and American legal journals (varying date coverage)
- Comprehensive collection of US law reviews from the 1980s and selected journals from common law jurisdictions, including Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
- US Federal and State case law
- US Federal legislation

Help and guidance
For basic, introductory guidance see the Westlaw getting started guide (PDF).
For more advanced guidance see the further resources on the Westlaw customer support site.
Complete the Westlaw UK certification training, an interactive walk-through of Westlaw UK, to demonstrate your skills by becoming a Certified user.

Accessing online Library resources

If you are on campus you will be able to access most e-journals and e-books, and some databases, without entering a username and password because your IP address identifies you as being at the University of Reading.

For any that require a login, see the Off-campus tab.

Terms of Use

When you use our e-resources you are agreeing to our Terms of Use. Please take a moment to look at these by following the link below:

Terms and conditions of use for Library e-resources

When you are off-campus you will need to login to identify yourself as a member of the University of Reading to gain access to our protected databases, e-books and e-journals.

Your login details

You login in the same way as for Blackboard - via Microsoft. Just enter your University username followed by @student.reading.ac.uk (e.g. ab123456@student.reading.ac.uk) and your password. If this is the first time you have logged in via this method when off-campus you will be asked to complete a Multi-Factor Authentication. For more information see:

Find out more about multi-factor authentication

Getting to the login page...

For most resources, if you follow a link from our website or catalogues your login will be picked up automatically or you will be prompted to login straightaway.
If you access resources via another route you will need to look for a login option once you reach the resource you are trying to access. Look for an institutional or shibboleth login option and pick 'University of Reading' from a list of institutions. This will then pick up your login or prompt you to login. For more information about institutional login, please see the link below:

Find out more about the Institutional login

Logging in to Library resources

Watch this short video on how you login to use Library resources.

Newspapers

Newspapers can be a good source for the latest developments in a field and for current opinion on emerging and established topics or issues.

We have online access to a number of current and archive newspaper issues, see the list below for examples.

Gale NewsVault [full-text]
This resource has been replaced. Please see Gale Primary Sources for the new product.
Guardian, The, on LexisLibrary [full-text] This link opens in a new window
The Guardian is a British daily newspaper covering the latest news, sport, business, comment and analysis. Includes print and online content. Covers 1984 to the present day.
We also have access to The Guardian on Gale OneFile: News from 1990 to the present day and on the ProQuest International Newsstream from 1992 to the present day.

Help and guidance

For comprehensive guidance see the LexisLibrary support site which includes training videos, tips and user guides.
A range of training videos are available on the LexisNexis Resources YouTube channel.
Complete the LexisLibrary research certificate.
ProQuest News & Newspapers [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Full-text of over many local, regional and national newspapers, news websites and blogs from leading publishers throughout the world. Includes backfiles for most newspapers, providing access to articles, columns, editorials, obituaries and features published in each paper.
The following collections can be searched together or separately:

Canadian Newsstream - over 190 Canadian newspapers from Canada's leading publishers, some dating back to the late 1970s

International Newsstream - covers over 660 of the world's top newspapers including the following key titles:

The Financial Times (1996 onwards)
The Guardian (1996 onwards)
The New York Times (1980 onwards)
The Observer (1995 onwards)
The Telegraph (2006 onwards)
Wall Street Journal (1984 onwards)

ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Guardian and The Observer - The complete digital edition of The Guardian (1821-2003) and The Observer (1791-2003) containing full facsimile images of specific articles or complete pages.

ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Washington Post - The complete digital edition of The Washington Post (1877-2004) containing full facsimile images of specific articles or complete pages.

US Newsstream - includes the most recent premium U.S. news content, as well as archives which stretch back into the 1980s featuring newspapers, newswires, blogs, and news sites in active full-text format.

Each issue of each newspaper is indexed thoroughly, so researchers have access to not only top news stories but also the information contained on the various sections of the papers. The indexing covers not only complete bibliographic information but also companies, people, products, etc.
The Telegraph Historical Archive [full-text] This link opens in a new window
Archive of this important British newspaper. Covers 1855-2016. Includes The Sunday Telegraph from 1961.
This archive can be searched simultaneously with other primary source archives on the Gale Primary Sources service.

Help and guidance
Once logged in to the Archive click on the 'Help' link for comprehensive guidance.
Times, The on Lexis Library This link opens in a new window
Online access to features, articles and other information published in The Times. Covers 1985 to the present day.

We also have access to the Times Digital Archive on Gale Primary Sources from 1785 to 2014.

Help and guidance
For comprehensive guidance see the LexisLibrary support site which includes training videos, tips and user guides.
A range of training videos are available on the LexisNexis Resources YouTube channel.
Complete the LexisLibrary research certificate.

For further information and links go to our Finding newspapers guide:

Finding newspapers

Multimedia resources

This is a selection of video and sound resources containing relevant material:

Academic Video Online on Alexander Street [video] This link opens in a new window
Video material including documentaries, interviews, performances, news programmes and newsreels covering a variety of events and themes.
We also have access to Academic Video Online on ProQuest

Academic Video Online is a comprehensive source of video material including 70,000 titles with curricular relevance: documentaries, interviews, performances, news programmes, newsreels and more. Use the Alexander Street link for the best browsing experience.

Academic Video Online comprises some of the following channels:

-60 Minutes: 1997-2014
-American History
-Black Studies
-LGBT Studies
-The March of Time
-World History
-World Newsreels Online 1929-1966

Some of subjects covered are:

-Art & Architecture
-Criminal Justice & Public Safety
-Drama
-Education
-Engineering
-Environmental Studies
-History
-Literature
-Politics & Current Affairs
-Psychology
-Science
-Theatre

Help and guidance
Alexander Street Press resources help

How you may use the content
Permitted

-lecture presentations
-Blackboard - embed the video in your module or link to it
-student work

Tip! You may make clips and playlists with the videos

Not permitted

-publicly available websites
-public display in University
-any alteration, adaption or modification the video
Box of Broadcasts [video & audio] This link opens in a new window
Box of Broadcasts (BoB) is a collection of TV and radio programmes from free-to-air channels. Set new recordings and playback programmes already recorded. Content back to 1990s.
Record and view TV and radio programmes from over 75 free-to-airchannels and access an archive of over 2 million programmes from the 1990s to the present day. Includes content from:
- BBC TV and radio
- ITV
- Channel 4
- Film4
- Sky Arts
-1 0 foreign language channels (Italian, French and German)
- BBC Shakespeare Archive content dating back to the 1950s

Use tools within BoB to create innovative and engaging learning materials to support teaching and learning;
- Create playlists, clips and clip compilations
- Embed content in BlackBoard and use in lectures
- Find programmes and clips on your topic by searching across programme transcripts and subtitles

How you may use the content

Permitted:
- lecture presentations
- Blackboard
- Create clips
- Embed in student coursework - provided it is within BlackBoard

Tip! Acknowledge the source and title of the programme and the ERA licensing scheme - see text under each video on BoB.

Not permitted:
- using BoB from outside the UK
- downloading or copying the videos - they are for streaming only
- publicly available websites
- public display in University
- any alteration, adaption or modification of the video or audio (except creating clips)
- promotional materials

Help and guidance
BoB video tutorials - including videos on using embed codes and using BoB videos in PowerPoint

Have a look at the BoB Frequently Asked Questions

Recommended browsers for BoB are Internet Explorer 11, Edge 12, Mozilla Firefox 44, Safari 8, Google Chrome 48 - or later versions of any of these browsers.

How to embed BoB videos in BlackBoard [PDF]

Tip! Each clip has a citation which you can copy.
Britannica ImageQuest [images] This link opens in a new window
ImageQuest is a high resolution image library of over 2.7 million images which are rights-cleared for academic use from various collections including National Geographic, Getty Images, National History Museum and more.
How you may use the content
Images are for Educational use only and must be displayed with the copyright owner details shown under the image.

Permitted:
- lecture presentations
- printed course materials
- Blackboard
- student work
Tip! Use the citing tool with each image to create a citation in your chosen style

Not permitted:
- on a publicly accessible website
- on public display in the University

Help and guidance
The quick product tour shows how to search for images, download them and create personalised albums.
British Library Sounds [sound] This link opens in a new window
A database of over 50,000 sound recordings from the British Library Sound Archive.
You do not need to log in to listen to most recordings, but you will need to create an account with the British Library to download them or to access some restricted recordings.

You may use the sound recordings for teaching, learning and research - see below for more details of how you may use the content.

Access to over 50,000 sound recordings from the British Library Sound Archive. Covers:
- Accents and dialects
- Arts, literature, and performance
- Classical music
- Environment and nature
- Jazz and popular music
- Oral history
- Sound recording history
- World and traditional music

How you may use the content

Permitted:
- lecture presentations
- Blackboard
- student work
- segment recordings using audio editing tools

Not permitted:
- publicly available websites
- public display in University

Please note that some recordings are not available for download - for more information see the British Library Sounds - conditions of use.Help and guidance
British Library Sounds help page
BUFVC Search This link opens in a new window
Provides a simultaneous search across the BUFVC's 9 online databases relating to film, television and radio content dating from 1896 onwards.
The databases included are:
- TRILT
UK television and radio data
- News on Screen - A resource for the study of newsfilm
- Shakespeare - Shakespeare-related content on film, television and radio
- Find DVD - a guide to audio visual materials for educational use
- TVTiP: TVTimes Project 1955-1985
- programme listings from the London edition of the TVTimes
- This Week - programme information from This Week, ITV's first current affairs series
- ILR South - programmes from Independent Local Radio stations in the Central Southern area, including Berkshire
- London Broadcasting Company/Independent Radio audio archive - selected news and current affairs material from 1973 to the mid 1990s
- ILR Sharing - programmes from the Independent Local Radio Programme Sharing Scheme, 1983-1990
Kanopy [video] This link opens in a new window
Access to thousands of films for the arts & humanities.
Use the Browse feature to search by subject or genre, or the search bar at the top of the page to look for a film by title.

Help and guidance
Help using the Kanopy site

How you may use the content
You may only use the content for educational purposes.

Permitted
-lecture presentations
-creating clips and playlists
-embedding clips or films in BlackBoard
-embedding in student coursework

Not permitted
-downloading or copying the videos - they are for streaming only
-public display in the University
-any alteration, adaption or modification of the video or audio (except creating clips)

In addition to the resources listed here, gender-related topics are covered in a wide range of other video, image and sound resources, see our full list:

Individual video, image and sound resources

For guidance on how to use our multimedia e-resources, see:

Finding video, image and sound resources

Videos: doing your literature search

This playlist of two videos shows you how to prepare for and perform a literature search. The first video introduces literature searches and their role. The second video covers using the search operators AND and OR to create a search statement, and explains the role of wildcards and truncation in constructing a comprehensive search. This information is also available in written guides - see the links below.

Related guides

Literature searching
A guide to finding articles, books and other materials on your subject
Guide to searching databases

Gender, women, sexuality, masculinity and feminism: E-resources

Library e-resources