completed at the University of Florida, 1956-2000
Comprehensive bibliography: African-related theses and dissertations completed at the University of Florida, 1956-2000 |
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compiled by
Steve Marr, Graduate Assistant
and
Daniel Reboussin, Ph.D.
Assistant Bibliographer, Africana Collection
June, 2001
[Note: The preface below is adapted from the July 2000 printed edition (which included titles through 1999), but the comprehensive bibliography is updated through calendar year 2000. It is arranged alphabetically by author's last name (A-M and N-Z), and the indexes, refering to individual authors by keyword and degree-granting department].
Preface
This is the second printed version of African-related theses and dissertations completed at the University of Florida, 1956-1999. The first was produced four years ago, during the summer of 1996, and entitled Africa-related dissertations and theses completed at the University of Florida, 1956-1995. In our first effort at documenting the corpus of UF graduate thesis research on Africa, 174 master's level theses and doctoral dissertations held in the UF Libraries were listed. Several graduate assistants involved at early stages of the process, primarily searching the Library Catalog and collecting data, were credited in that first printed version of this project. I reviewed the work that they had done and which had been shelved for several years, rechecked the information they had collected, updated it, devised a keyword scheme, and migrated the information so gathered from the ProCite database to Microsoft Access. The indexed bibliography was printed and later included as a page on the Africana Collection web site at https://www.uflib.ufl.edu/cm/spec/disserta.htm [N.B. the url has been revised more than once since 1996]. Updates have been appended each year since, for degrees completed in 1996-2004. Individual year lists are available for 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004.
Because theses and dissertations are not specifically identified as African-related by departmental affiliation or any other standard terms in the library catalog, they can be difficult to identify as such in a catalog search. Of great assistance to me were two sources: first, Carol Lauriault, former Office Manager at the Center for African Studies, opened her student files to me and assisted me with her personal recollections; and second, the University of Florida Graduate School publication Abstracts of theses and dissertations (Library West, Reference: LD1780.7.U541 A164) provides information not available in catalog records. But in fact I have found no better method than to review each catalog record for theses and dissertations published in any given year, consulting the abstracts in cases that are uncertain and at times looking at the item itself to confirm the substantial inclusion (arbitrarily, about one-third of the text or more) of information and analysis regarding Africa.
There have been many significant changes in the way the project has been undertaken over time, from data collection and interpretation to coding and the maintenance of records in new database management software. I reviewed the entire contents of our database with the help of Kristen Jacobson, Africana Collection graduate assistant in 1997 and 1998. Each entry was reconsidered with renewed attention to its appropriateness for inclusion, and importantly the keyword lexicon was completely revised and rationalized. Therefore, this version represents much more than an update with the newest titles simply added to the list. It is truly a revised edition with many changes throughout the bibliography. Printing this revised bibliography with full keyword and department indexes is a particular priority as theses are documented for the final years of the twentieth century.
Two hundred and thirty one theses and dissertations on African-related topics completed at UF now have been listed and analyzed, representing an average production of more than fourteen graduate degrees each year between 1995 and 1999. At least half of these degrees were awarded at the doctorate level each year during this time period. The tremendous growth of advanced research activities relating to Africa during the decade of the 1990s is most impressive, particularly in areas relating to parks and reserves, wildlife conservation, ecology, and zoology.
Comments, corrections, and suggestions for additional inclusions are welcome and should be sent directly to me. The web page provides contact information as well as updates to the document itself.Daniel A. Reboussin, Ph.D.
July 20, 2000
