Non-Legal Periodicals
The basic idea behind researching non-legal concepts is the same you use in researching law: find a secondary source and expand your research from citations to other primary and secondary sources within that source. It is easy to locate books and periodicals outside of the law through the main campus library.
Finding Discipline-Specific Periodicals
The Journal Title & eBook Locator on will search the catalog of the entire university library system for journals related to your search terms. Keep in mind that this is a TITLE search--it will look at the titles of journals and periodicals for your terms, not at the full text of the journal. This is a way to identify the major publications that will be likely to publish articles on your topic.
Finding Databases
You can search our research databases in two different ways:
1. Search the Law & Law-Related Databases to locate the databases that are curated by the law school.
2. Search Boatwright library's full list of databases to find interdisciplinary and topic-specific research databases outside of the law.
- Law & Law-Related DatabasesSearch for your topic + "policy" to find databases related to your research area.
- All Campus DatabasesSearch in the full list of databases available through the University of Richmond to find non-legal databases in your research area.
Non-Law Journals
- JuncturePublished by The Institute for Public Policy Research, 1994 to present.
- Public Policy and Administration1986 to Present "Public Policy and Administration is the journal of the UK Joint University Council (JUC) Public Administration Committee (PAC). PPA aims to publish original peer-reviewed material within the broad field of public policy and administration. This includes recent developments in research, scholarship and practice within public policy, public administration, government, public management, administrative theory, administrative history, and administrative politics."
- The Cornell Policy ReviewArchives available on website, free access 2009-present. "The Cornell Policy Review is the official public policy journal of the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs (CIPA). . .founded in 1996 as The Current, The Cornell Policy Review is published annually by CIPA Fellows who serve as both editors and contributors for the Policy Review, drawing upon their own research and professional experience. The editorial board also solicits book reviews, interviews, and scholarly contributions from public policy students and alumni from other programs across the country."
- Public Policy Research1998 to present, "Peer reviewed coverage of key developments in public policy. The "left-leaning" journal of the Institute for Public Policy Research. Primary focus on UK, covers the EU and the USA as well."
State Specific Resources
- Virginia Institute for Public Policy"The Virginia Institute for Public Policy is an independent, nonpartisan, education and research organization committed to the goals of individual opportunity and economic growth. Through research, policy recommendations, and symposia, the Institute works ahead of the political process to lay the intellectual foundation for a society dedicated to individual liberty, free enterprise, private property, the rule of law, and constitutionally limited government."
SSRN - Social Science Research Network
- Social Science Research NetworkDivided into "networks," SSRN is a repository for a wide variety of social science academic articles--including the law--designed to encourage the early distribution of research results and papers. Scholarly articles are posted by the author or their institution, with publications circulated throughout the scholarly community at an early stage, permitting the author to incorporate comments into the final version of the paper before its publication in a journal.
Think Tanks and Organizations
There are several directories to find Think Tanks dedicated to various areas of public policy.
- PolicyFileIn PolicyFile, researchers have access to over 336 think tanks, research organizations, advocacy groups including the Hoover Institution, International Monetary Fund, Organization for Economic Cooperatin and Development, RAND Corporation, and the World Bank.
- Google Think Tank Engine SearchHarvard Kennedy School maintains a Customized Google Search engine that searches more than 300 think tanks for policy reports and white papers.
- SourceWatch - Think TanksDetailed article on the creation of Think Tanks and a long list with links of specific global organizations.
- Michigan State University - Political Science / Public Policy Resources: Think TanksResearch guide with a very large directory of think tanks.
- Wikipedia - List of think tanks in the United StatesRather lengthy list of think tanks in the United states