BIBLIOGRAPHIC ACCESS TO DISSERTATIONS

BIBLIOGRAPHIC ACCESS TO DISSERTATIONS

Introduction

Doctoral dissertations constitute one of the researcher's most valuable tools: the older ones are invaluable for the reconstruction of the history of research, while the more recent ones show the latest trends in scholarship, reveal the status of the discipline, and provide excellent bibliographies. Access to these works, however, is hindered by three difficulties: (1) since the doctoral thesis is by nature an unpublished work, one cannot rely on publishers' catalogs or certain other bibliographical tools to alert one to works of interest; (2) the bibliographic services that attempt to cover such works are often from one to three years behind thesis completion dates; and (3) restrictions are sometimes placed on the use of dissertations (e.g., prohibition of copying or lending). When call numbers are given, "P" designates holdings at the Pitts Theology Library and "W" those at Woodruff.

Bibliographic Access

Each bibliographic tool that gives one access to current doctoral dissertations has its own unique mixture of advantages and disadvantages. In the discussion that follows, a number of these tools are evaluated.

American Doctoral Dissertations

ADD is an annual publication by University Microfilms International (UMI) that covers American and Canadian institutions, whether they belong to the Dissertation Abstracts program or not. Consequently, while no abstracts are included (only author, title, degree, and date are given), the coverage in North America is greater than in Dissertation Abstracts. The entries are arranged alphabetically by author within school within subject for 1933-1971. (P Ref Z1007 .D65)

Comprehensive Dissertation Index

CDI attempts to index all U.S. and some foreign dissertations between 1861 and 1972. The works are grouped by general subject (e.g. Philosophy and Religion in vv. 33-37) and then indexed by author and keyword. Each entry includes basic bibliographical information but no abstract. (W Ref Z5055 .U6A2)

Dissertation Abstracts International

The most prominent instrument in America for bibliographic access to doctoral theses is DAI, which is published by UMI. Sections A (The Humanities and Social Sciences) and B (The Sciences and Engineering) are published monthly and include bibliographic information and abstracts for dissertations completed in North America from 1861 to the present at institutions that participate in the program. Section C (Worldwide) includes the same information about dissertations completed outside North America and is published quarterly. Abstracts of theses are arranged by topic within each section (e.g., works on the book of Revelation would probably be found under the "Theology" listing of "Philosophy, Religion and Theology," although the precise nature of the thesis could cause it to be set elsewhere). Another UMI publication, Masters Abstracts, provides access to masters theses. UMI offers all these theses for sale in microform or softbound copy. DAI is indexed by author, title, and subject and may be searched at the Woodruff Library in its hardbound copies, on CD-ROM disks, or by on-line computer searching through BRS or DIALOG. The Pitts library has a standing order for doctoral dissertations in the field of religion that are available through UMI.

(W Ref Z1007 .D63)

Elenchus of Biblica

Elenchus of Biblica is a bibliography of literature about the Bible and related topics that covers doctoral dissertations, as well as periodical and monographic literature (1920-). While it is the most extensive bibliography for biblical studies, it is usually several years behind in its coverage of literature. (P Periodicals Room)

Ephemerides theologicae lovanienses

Since 1923, ETL has published an annual bibliography entitled "Elenchus bibliographicus," which includes citations of dissertations. Its coverage of topics is broader than Elenchus of Biblica (e.g., the former includes canon law, ethics, and theology), and its publication is more current. Entries are arranged by subject, and there are numerous cross references. (P Periodicals Room)

Religious Studies Review

RSR regularly includes references to dissertations in its second ("Recent Dissertations in Religion") and third ("Dissertations in Progress") numbers (1975-). These are listed alphabetically by author under subject. (P Periodicals Room)

Research in Ministry

RIM is published by the American Theological Library Association and lists D.Min. theses from reporting Association of Theological Schools members (1981-). Theses are listed by title within subject, and there is an author index with thesis abstracts. (P Ref Z7751 .R43) These works are accessible electronically as "Religion Indexes" on the CD-ROM at Pitts or searched online via BRS or DIALOG at Woodruff. Some of these theses were completed at institutions that submit dissertations to UMI and so may be found in Dissertation Abstracts, too.

Revue théologique de Louvain

RTL is a quarterly journal that has included a section entitled "Index international des dissertations doctorales en théologie et en droit canonique" each year since 1978. The dissertations are listed alphabetically by author within broad subject category (e.g., "Nouveau Testament, christianisme primitif" constitutes a single category). Citations include author, title, educational institution, degree, date of completion, thesis director, and reference to abstract if available. (P Periodicals Room)

Miscellaneous

  1. There are also listings of dissertations that have been completed (e.g., "Summaries of [Harvard] Dissertations" in Harvard Theological Review) or that are in progress (e.g., "Berichte über Dissertationen" in Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft) in various scholarly journals. (There is a listing of recent OT dissertations and a characterization of each in some issues of ZAW in the section entitled "Zeitschriftenschau," under the heading Dissertation Abstracts.)

  2. Early theological dissertations are indexed in the following:

  3. There are also a number of countries that publish annual lists of dissertations completed at educational institutions within their borders. Two of these are especially important, since most of their schools have not participated in the UMI program: Jahresverzeichnis der Hochschulschriften (Germany) and Inventaire des thèses de doctorat soutenues devant les universités françaises (France). These are listed by educational institution and indexed by subject. For South African academic theses, there is South African Theological Bibliography, which also indexes periodical literature. Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Great Britain, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the U.S.S.R. also produce national bibliographies of dissertations.

  4. Dissertations may also be found by searching the RLIN (Research Libraries Information Network) or OCLC (Online Computer Library Center) databases. Searches on these databases may be done at Pitts or Woodruff but cannot be limited to dissertations.

  5. The following bibliographies of dissertations in religion are limited more narrowly by date or subject than the titles that have been listed so far and do not represent on-going bibliographic projects:

Search Strategies

Procurement

Foreign dissertations that are unavailable through customary ILL sources may be ordered by Emory from the Center for Research Libraries (Chicago).

-M. Patrick Graham