Finding Books and Articles about the United Nations
To find books about the UN, its work, and the UN family of organizations, use the "Books, Images & More" tab of NUSearch or Google Books under the name of the organization or a topic it addresses.
To find articles you can use NUSearch, databases, or journals & magazines like those listed below. NGOs (see the section in this guide) also follow the UN and its work and point users to key documents.
Short Cuts and Tricks
The UN publishes an immense amount of material, much of which is ephemeral. One trick is to rely on expert summaries that can be found in the following sources:
- Use the United Nations Yearbook Collection to find key documents of debates and actions.
- Use the UN Library's research guide on United Nations Reports to find summary reports for the work of the UN and UN "flagship publications" such as Reports of the Secretary General.
- Use online encyclopedias to get ideas and links to UN key documents, for example the Oxford Handbook of the United Nations
- If you are doing country based research definitely use On the Record.
- Use the UN Documentation Research Guide from the UN Library in New York.
Learn about the UN
Another method is to do find research written about the UN in political science, public policy, and international relations databases like these listed beow.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new windowGoogle Scholar searches academic publishers, professional societies and pre-print archives.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowDigitized, full-text versions of core scholarly journals across disciplines.While coverage of these journals goes back to the first issue, for most journals the most recent issues will be for 3-5 years ago.
- PAIS Index This link opens in a new windowIndex focusing on public affairs, public and social policies and international relations. Provides references to journal articles, books, government documents, statistics, grey literature, research reports, conference papers, and more. Covers 1914 to present.
- Worldwide Political Science Abstracts This link opens in a new windowCitations with abstracts from more than 1,100 journals in political science and related disciplines. Coverage is international in scope, combining the former Political Science Abstracts and ABC POL SCI databases.
- International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS) This link opens in a new windowThe International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS) provides citations in social science and interdisciplinary research, with broad coverage of international material and incorporates over 100 languages and countries. Subject areas include sociology, political science, economics, anthropology, ethnography, demography, education and more. 1951-Present. Individual publication coverage varies by title.
- EconLit This link opens in a new windowEconLit, the American Economic Association's electronic database, is a comprehensive index to the literature of economics. This database provides citations to journal articles, books, chapters in edited volumes, working papers, dissertations, and book reviews, with selected abstracts and some full-text content. Covers the 1880s-present.
The Parliament of ManIn The Parliament of Man, scholar Paul Kennedy gives a thorough and timely history of the United Nations that explains the institution’s roots and functions while also casting an objective eye on the UN’s effectiveness as a body and on its prospects for success in meeting the challenges that lie ahead.
Act of Creation by Call Number: Main Library Stacks 341.23 U577ZscPublication Date: 2004How Secretary of State Edward Stettinius and American President, Harry Truman, picked up the pieces of the faltering campaign initiated by Franklin Roosevelt to create a "United Nations." Using secret agents, financial resources, and their position of power, they overcame the intrigues of Stalin, the reservations of wartime allies, the discontent of smaller states, and a skeptical press corps to found the United Nations.
All Necessary Measures by Call Number: e-bookPublication Date: 2013What prompts the United Nations Security Council to engage forcefully in some crises at high risk for genocide and ethnic cleansing but not others? In All Necessary Measures, Carrie Booth Walling identifies several systematic patterns in the stories that council members tell about conflicts and the policy solutions that result from them.
The Once and Future Security CouncilThe collection of essays in The Once and Future Security Council constitutes highly clarifying and penetrating analyses of the vexing issue of UN Security Council reform from differing vantage points.
Secretary or General? by Call Number: Oak Grove Library Center - Request Online 352.113 S446Publication Date: 2007The Secretary-General of the United is a unique figure in world politics. This book brings together the insights of senior UN staff, diplomats and scholars to examine the normative and political factors that shape this unique office with particular emphasis on how it has evolved in response to changing circumstances.
- The Economist1992-present
Search the 1843-2020 archive here. - Foreign AffairsFull text (1922-present) from several vendors linked to this NUSearch record.
- International OrganizationFull text (1947-present) from several vendors linked to this NUSearch record.
- Journal of International AffairsFull text (1947-present) from several vendors linked to this NUSearch record.
- The UN Chronicle1964-present; Digitized content can be searched using vendors linked to this NUSearch record.
- International AffairsFull text (1944-present) from several vendors linked to this NUSearch record.
UN Documents
- UN Digital Library1993-present, All UN Documents
1946 forward
Resolutions
Security Council plenary documents
Meeting records of the plenary meetings of the General Assembly
Supplements to the General Assembly Official Records