Dictionaries help to clarify terminology by providing definitions of terms. These can also be a good source of potential keywords for searches in the catalog or databases.

• APA Dictionary of Psychology.
  Publisher: Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2007.
  Location: MAIN Reference
  Call Number: 150.3 A639
   
• The Cambridge Dictionary of Psychology.
  Publisher: Leiden: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  Online Access: click for full text
   
• A Dictionary of Psychology.
  Publisher: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
  Online: via click for full text
   
• The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology. 3rd. ed.
  Publisher: New York: Penguin Books, 2001.
  Location: MAIN Core
  Call Number: 150.321 R291p 2001
  Online: via click for full text
   
• The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 5th ed.
  Publisher: Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.
  Call number: MUSIC Library (Stacks) ML 100 .K35 2007
  Online Access: click for full text
   
• The Hutchinson Concise Dictionary of Music.
  Publisher: Abingdon, Oxon: Helicon Pub., 2006.
  Online Access: click for full text
   
• The New Penguin Dictionary of Music.
  Publisher: London: Penguin, 2006.
  Online Access: click for full text
   

Encyclopedias provide background information on key concepts, theories and measures to help you better understand the field. Encyclopedia articles typically provide references to further readings where you can find additional detailed information on your topic.

• The Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science.
  Publisher: Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2005.
  Online: via Credo Reference
   
• Elsevier's Dictionary of Psychological Theories.
  Publisher: Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2008.
  Location: MAIN Reference
  Call Number: 150.3 E49
  Online: via click for full text
   
• Encyclopedia of Applied Psychology.
  Publisher: San Diego, CA: Elsevier, 2004.
  Location: MAIN Reference
  Call Number: L 158.03 E56
  Online: via Credo Reference
   
• Encyclopedia of Psychological Assessment.
  Publisher: Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2003.
  Location: MAIN Reference
  Call Number: 150.28703 E56
   
• International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences.
  Publisher: Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2001.
  Location: MAIN Reference
  Call Number: 300.3 I61
  Online: via Gale Virtual Reference Library
   
• Oxford Music Online
  Publisher: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
   

Handbooks are quick sources of facts and can supplement encyclopedia articles by providing detailed summaries of broad topics in the field.

• Author: Patrik N. Juslin and John A. Sloboda.
  Title: Handbook of Music and Emotion : Theory, Research, Applications.
  Publisher: Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.
  Call number: MUSIC Library (Stacks) ML 3830 .H35
   
• Author: Susan Hallam, et al.
  Title: The Oxford Handbook of Music Psychology.
  Publisher: Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
  Call number: MUSIC Library (Stacks) ML 3830 .O9
   
• Author: Michael Lewis.
  Title: Handbook of Emotions. 3rd ed.
  Publisher: New York: Guilford Publications, Inc., 2008.
  Online Access: click for full text
   
• Author: Richard Colwell and Music Educators National Conference (U.S.).
  Title: MENC Handbook of Musical Cognition and Development.
  Publisher: New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
  Call number: MUSIC Library (Reference) (Non-circulating) MT 1 .M98736
  Online Access: click for full text
   
• Author: Jerrold Levinson.
  Title: The Oxford Handbook of Aesthetics.
  Publisher: Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
  Call number: MAIN Reference (Non-circulating) 111.85 O98
   
• Author: E. Bruce Goldstein.
  Title: Blackwell Handbook of Perception.
  Publisher: Oxford, UK ; Malden, Mass., USA: Blackwell, 2001.
  Online Access: click for full text