LibGuides: Public Management and Administration: Topic Overviews

Books

The books listed below provide good overviews on a wide range of topics. It's a smart idea to search the CUNY catalog to find books specifically on your topic.

Encyclopedia of governance by Bevir, Mark
Call Number: Sage eBook
Publication Date: 2007
Great American Court Cases by Mark Mikula and L. Mpho Mabunda
Call Number: eBook - Gale in Context - World History
Publication Date: 1999
Also available in hard-copy:
John Jay College Reference Desk KF 385 .A4 G68 1999 Non Circulating Each volume of the four volume set is divided into broad subjects. Each chapter first provides a thorough overview of the subject (e.g., labor and labor practices, immigrants' rights, state powers, etc.) followed by a description and in-depth information on individual cases that shaped policy.

Databases

Begin your research by reading a broad subject overview that will provide a framework for understanding the topic. The sources on this page can provide an examination of the issue and help you understand the big picture. Many of the databases listed here contain a brief history of the issue, important statistics and links to related and authoritative information. Several provide supporting and opposing arguments. All the information can be very useful for understanding and narrowing down your topic.

CQ Researcher Plus Archive
Comprehensive source of information on a wide variety of topics. Topics can be searched by typing in a term or selecting from a broad list of topic categories. Each entry contains an in-depth overview, pro and con arguments, a chronology of the important events related to the topic including legislation and court decisions, statistics and links to further information. This is a great database to use when beginning research on a topic.
CQ Supreme Court Collection
Easy-to-use database that provides overviews of Supreme Court cases,the Constitution and all concepts relating to these subjects. One can search using drop-down menus listing "Law and Society topics" or Constitutional articles and amendments.
Click on "Supreme Court Encyclopedia" on the left side of the screen for overviews of constitutional topics.

Encyclopedia of the American Constitution
This encyclopedia contains informative essays on topics, people and theories pertaining to the Constitution and Constitutional law. This is a great "first stop" to research a concept or constitutional amendment. The encyclopedia also contains entries on court cases.
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A hard-copy version of this source is available at:
Reference Desk KF 4548 .E53 2000

Gale eBooks (Gale Virtual Reference)
Collection of fulltext articles from a wide variety of encyclopedias, dictionaries and reference books in a wide variety of disciplines (social sciences, law, history, etc). Articles may be printed, emailed or saved.
Opposing Viewpoints in Context
Provides a concise summary and overview of the issue, including an explanation and narrative of the ethical, legislative, and social implications of the issue. Other reports are also available for each topic under the heading "Reference" The unique benefit of the database is that it provides news articles and scholarly or academic articles that support each side of an issue. Statistics and links to other sources are included as well.
Sage Knowledge Collection
Like Gale Virtual Reference, this source allows you to search through many general and subject specialized encyclopedias for in-depth overview articles on subjects and concepts.

Subject Guide

Peggy Teich