ARTS 1014 Guide Ask Us

Statistics are data that have been collected and classified or analyzed (OED). They usually answer questions such as "how much or how many?" Data, then, are the raw material from which statistics are create and answer questions such as "how" and "why?" Whether you need a table or chart to insert into a report or a dataset to analyze and ask your own research questions, UNB Libraries' staff are pleased to be able to help you.

UNB Libraries Data Services page contains many links to freely available and licensed statistical and data resources. Some of the most important resources include:

Data Sources

• Statistics Canada
  • SDA @ CHASS, via University of Toronto
  • RDS (Rich Data Services)

Using SDA @ CHASS to Create Cross Tabs

How to create crosstab tables in Excel 

Welcome to UNB Libraries!

This guide is designed to lead you through the types of resources that you can find through the Libraries for research.

 

Think of this guide as a launching pad to library research. Should you need help for other courses or help that relates to a specific subject or discipline, please see the full list of Guides on the Libraries' web site.

 

Notice that this site is organized using tabs. Each tab lists different kinds of resources, which are usually most useful at different stages of your research process. While you likely won't need 'Reference Materials' to complete the assignment for this course, we suggest starting with this tab for most research assignments. 'Reference Materials' are resources that give you overviews of your subject, define terms, list useful books and journals to look for, and help you to frame your research topic.

 

Use the 'Books' tab to find online and print books at UNB Libraries. Books generally provide more in-depth information on your topic. Scan the Table of Contents and the Index of the books you find, to see if they focus on any aspects of your topic.

 

Once you feel that you understand your research question, use the 'Articles' tab to locate and read journal articles on your topic. Because journal articles are usually much shorter than books, they tend to spend less time explaining the background of the topic at hand.

 

If you encounter concepts or terms that you don't understand, loop back to 'Reference Materials' to find a dictionary or encyclopedia that will help you to understand what you're reading.

Depending on the subject area, guides will have additional tabs, such as the 'Primary Sources' tab in History guides, which list collections of documents from various historical periods, and provides instructions for finding more in the library catalogue and in the bibliographies of the books and articles that you find.

Finally, the 'Citing your Sources' tab provides information on how to document what you read and use in your own research, using the style preferred by your discipline.

If you need help using this Guide, or have any questions, please don't hesitate to Ask Us.

Your library assignment asks for scholarly sources. How do you evaluate your sources? Watch this video to find out:

Each library has a collection of Reference sources, like encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks of research, and other tools that will help you to get valuable background information on your subject, define terminology, identify key scholars and research topics. You might use Reference sources if you're:

• Not understanding your course readings
• Trying to focus on a research question or a thesis statement
• Needing to know more about a person, country, event
• Looking for general statistical data
• Looking for a list of sources on a particular topic
• ...or for many other reasons

Some Reference sources are online and others are in print. In either format, they will provide you with reliable information throughout your studies.

Key Resources

See Additional Resources Hide Additional Resources

The Libraries' default catalogue, UNB WorldCat, provides a quick and easy way to search for online and print materials at UNB Libraries. Search results will include e-books, books, DVDs, journals, newspapers, and magazines, as well as content from selected article databases.

Document Delivery

Books and other materials not available at UNB may be available for loan from another institution through our document delivery service. To search for materials not held by UNB Libraries, search UNB WorldCat, and change the default UNB Libraries to Libraries Worldwide. Once you have identified a title that is not locally held, select the red Request Item button and follow the screens. You can also access the document delivery request form directly.

Article databases help you to locate academic journal articles and other publications on your topic. Search results will have links to open available articles in full text through UNB Libraries' subscriptions. UNB Libraries provides access to dozens of article databases. The following two are interdisciplinary and will be of particular help in completing your ARTS 1013 assignment.

As you progress through your degree program, you may need to access discipline-specific databases. For example, Literature Online is specific to English, Historical Abstracts relates to world history, and CINAHL is a health sciences database. These are just three examples of the dozens of article databases available through UNB Libraries. To find the best database for your research topic, browse our selection of Guides from UNB Libraries' home page.

Accurate, properly formatted bibliographies are hallmarks of good academic research. Through citing, you acknowledge the source of any ideas you mention in your writing, document your research, and provide the information your readers need to track down your sources.

Numerous citation styles exist, and each specifies what elements are required (title, author, journal name, etc.) and how the citation should be formatted.

APA style is used for your ARTS 1014 course assignments. Proper layout and formatting for your reference list can be found in: 

• Publication manual of the American Psychological Association: the official guide to APA style (print resource), and 
• APA Formatting and Style Guide, Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)

APA uses four major elements or components that make up the citation: author, date, title, and source, along with a DOI when available. Note that when a DOI is available, it should be used, even for a print resource, and that there is no period after this. If there is no DOI available, the source with page numbers is the last element and is concluded with a period.

Some formatted examples:

Statistical table from an Online Source

Statistics Canada. (2022, April 27). Table 98-10-0032-01 Broad age groups, gender and census year: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions. Census of Population, 2021. https://doi.org/10.25318/9810003201-eng

Data set

Statistics Canada. (2023). 2021 Census of Canada: Individuals file [Public Use Microdata File and codebook]. Statistics Canada. SDA https://sda.artsci.utoronto.ca

Academic Journal Article

Jacques, O., Arpin, E., Ammi, M., & Noël, A. (2023). The political and fiscal determinants of public health and curative care expenditures: evidence from the Canadian provinces, 1980–2018. Canadian Journal of Public Health : A Publication of the Canadian Public Health Association, 114(4), 584–592. https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-023-00751-y

e-Book

New Brunswick Health Council. (2010). Understanding New Brunswick’s health care costs and capacity to deliver health care : relationship between health care and sustainability. New Brunswick Health Council. https://www.deslibris.ca/ID/229278

Chapter in an Edited Collection

Connolly, M., Haeck, C., & Laliberte, J.-W. (2022). Parental Education and the Rising Transmission of Income between Generations. In Measuring Distribution and Mobility of Income and Wealth. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226816043.003.0011

Lecture Notes

Emery, H. (2025, September 3). [Lecture notes on Will your degree get you a better job, more income and make you better looking?]. Arts 1014, Faculty of Arts, University of New Brunswick.

Online Writing Lab - Purdue OWL

For help with different citation styles, connect with UNB's Writing Centres.

Zotero: automatically format references in any style.

How to create a table in APA style format using Excel

We hope the resources in this guide have helped you gain a better understanding of academic research and have helped you complete your Arts 1013 library assignment.

This section is a launching pad for future growth, as you continue your degree. The tools and handouts listed below will help you learn to be better, smarter, and more efficient when it comes to academic research. And don't forget that you can always AskUs any time you need help.

If you would like to complete a self-paced, comprehensive introduction to UNB Libraries and its resources, please check out the Research Toolkit in D2L Brightspace. It's a free, open course, and available to everyone at UNB. Once you register for the course, you can earn badges for completing sections and a certificate at the end.

Handouts

• Choosing a Research Topic and Developing a Research Question
• Academic Publication and Dissemination Cycle
• Searching Databases
• Reading Scholarly Sources - Books
• Reading Scholarly Sources - Articles
• Evaluating Academic Sources
• Google @ UNB Libraries