Primary Databases

Gallaudet University Index to Deaf Periodicals

The Index to Deaf Periodicals is a retrospective index to articles in selected deaf-related journals. A work in progress. The journals indexed so far are: American Annals of the Deaf and Dumb (from the 1880s), Deaf American, Deaf American Monographs, Deaf Life, Deaf Nation, and Silent Worker.
Coverage: 1847-1998

 

NTID Deaf Index from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf

An index to articles and other information about interpreting, sign language, deaf studies, deaf history, and related topics.

Databases for related fields

Communication and Mass Media Complete

Search for articles from scholarly journals in communication, mass media, and related fields [More info]

 

ERIC

Indexes journal articles and documents in education and related fields. Articles on American Sign Language focus on the educational treatment of the topic. [More info]

Tutorials for using ERIC

 

MLA International Bibliography

An index to scholarly research in the fields of literature, language, linguistics, and folklore produced by the Modern Language Association of America. Covers topics such as psycholinguistics; sign languages from different countries; and the syntax and semantics of sign language. [More info]

 

PsycINFO with PsycARTICLES

The premier database for psychology research; online version of Psychological Abstracts. Covers topics such as psycholinguistics. [More info]

 

Sociological Abstracts

An index to publications in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. Includes coverage of deaf culture and sign languages. [More info]

ProQuest Education Journals

ProQuest Education Journals provides more than 600 leading full-text journals in education and related fields. It covers not only the literature on primary, secondary, and higher education but also special education, home schooling, adult education, and hundreds of related topics.

More general databases with some coverage of American Sign Language

Academic Search Premier

An all-purpose academic database covering many disciplines [More info]

 

Expanded Academic ASAP

A multidisciplinary database; a good starting point for many academic research topics [More info]

 

Additional resources

ASL Browser from Michigan State

An online American Sign Language (ASL) dictionary that allows you to watch video clips of thousands of ASL signs

 

For more information, see our subject guide for American Sign Language.