When doing research in criminal justice there are a variety of sources available to you.  The first step is selecting a topic and figuring out what types of sources of information you will need to use for your research.

If you need scholarly and/or peer reviewed articles, you will want to start with a database. If you need background information, a good starting point would be a subject encyclopedia.  The boxes in the center of this page list online and print reference sources that might be helpful to get started.

If you need help figuring out where to begin please contact me.

Online encyclopedias are a good starting point for research.

There are many print reference sources that are also good starting points for research. The following are shelved in the reference collection on the second floor of Library North, exceptions noted:  

Congressional Quarterly's desk reference on American criminal justice: [over 500 answers to frequently asked questions from law enforcement to corrections]. HV 9950 B364 2001

Criminal justice. KF 9214.5 C75 2006

Dictionary of forensic psychology. RA 1148 .D53 2008 (Library South, Level 3)

Encyclopedia of American prisons. HV 9471 S54 2003

Encyclopedia of criminology and deviant behavior. HV 6017 E53 2001

Encyclopedia of forensic and legal medicine. RA 1017 E53 2005 (Library South, Level 3)

Encyclopedia of murder and violent crime. HV6515 .E5323 2003 

Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court. KF8742.A35 S54 2005

Prentice Hall's dictionary of American criminal justice, criminology, and criminal law. KF 9223 A68 F35 2010

The American dictionary of criminal justice : key terms and major court cases. HV 7411 C48 2005

Wiley encyclopedia of forensic science. HV 8073 .W55 2009