INTL 471 Understanding the International Experience: Country Profiles and Backgrounds
Finding General Country Information
The CIA World Factbook by Call Number: OnlineISBN: 1510740279Publication Date: 2018-05-08Old issues, 2000-2016, can also be found here:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/download/
A Guide to Countries of the World by ISBN: 9780199202713
- EIU Viewpoint (Economist Intelligence Unit)Largely economic and business data, but also includes analysis of political trends.
- Europa World and/or the Regional Surveys of the WorldCovers political and economic information about countries and territories, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.
- Country InsightsCanadian government's version of CIA World Factbook.
- BBC Country Profiles (Africa)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- BBC Country Profiles (Asia)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- BBC Country Profiles (Europe)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- BBC Country Profiles (Australia)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- BBC Country Profiles (Latin America)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- BBC Country Profiles (Middle East)British Broadcasting Corporation dossiers on nations.
- U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact SheetsUS Dept of State notes on relations with other countries.
- Country StudiesDetailed Library of Congress reports on countries. Includes information on politics, economics, culture, custom, and society. NOTE: Be mindful of publication date. Older books - like the one on "East Germany" and "Czechoslovakia" - are outdated and problematic!.
- World Trade Press Passport Series (Ebooks)Designed to quickly teach travelers about a country's culture and society.
Search for Subject Encyclopedias (PSU Only)
Finding Overviews in the Catalog
Reference books, such as encyclopedias, are books designed to provide general background information on a topic. While most academic books - called "monographs" - are argumentative and organized around a thesis, reference works are meant to provide detailed, accurate, and short descriptions of themes or issues relating to a single large topic.
Use the box above to find reference works on your topic. Begin with your topic:
You may end up with many results. Use the search bar on the left to further narrow your search.
If you still have too many results, limit the "Date" field to recent publications. See if your topic is a "Subject." This will limit the results to reference books specifically on your topic:
In this case, limiting to subject: Japan brings up 29 interesting and relevant results:
