Web-Based Conflict Research Tutorials

Now that you have gotten your hands dirty and have tried to seek out information about Jobs with Justice, their "Justice for Janitors" program, and the current context of the conflict, you may find yourself overwhelmed with the sheer bulk of information available on the Internet. Your next task is to discover which information is best suited and of adequate quality for your current needs and objectives.

Firsthand information is likely the most reliable and useful. However, because you cannot travel all over the country or world to seek out the information you need, you will need to locate the best sources available, given time, money, and geographic constraints. Although there are no hard and fast rules about finding the best or most reputable information for your search, there are some general factors to consider before you spend too much time looking in the wrong or inappropriate places. (See Table 2.)

The first question you must ask yourself is: What exactly am I looking for? By not asking this question, you may spend a considerable amount of time sifting through information that is irrelevant or peripheral to the conflict.

• Read Table 2.
• Find three books pertaining to workers' rights movements by using a library or online bookstore search engine.
• Search CRInfo.org for three articles, three websites, and three organizations that focus on labor disputes or workers' rights conflicts.
• Search BeyondIntractability.org for one or more articles/essays on topics relevant to labor disputes or workers' rights conflicts.
• Supersites (also called libraries, databases, information sources, or resource pages) are large, comprehensive websites with a variety of detailed resources on a particular issue, topic, or conflict. Try to Locate two or three of these Internet supersites pertaining to your conflict (i.e. if you are looking for supersites with information on contemporary workers' struggles, search for general "labor dispute supersites" or "labor dispute resources" first). Then, begin searching for supersites pertaining to more specific dimensions of your conflict, such as "service industry labor history supersites". Note: it is possible that supersites for your particular topic may not yet be available via the Internet.
• Which of the sources provided the best information for your search? Why?

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