CRIJ 3382 (Dr. Price): Women and the Criminal Justice System
Purpose: To acquaint you with materials in Cornette Library and on the World Wide Web that will make research for your assignment easier.
Source Evaluation
All information sources, print, electronic, and personal, should be evaluated for credibility before use. The ultimate use of the information should guide the rigor of the evaluation process.
General Evaluation Guidelines
- Authority
- Consider the qualifications (education, training, work experience, etc.) of the author/organization, other works they've authored, who links to or cites them.
- Specificity/Relevance
- Determine if the source is focused correctly, and what portion of your research question it addresses.
- Audience
- Consider age, education, interest level of those for whom the piece is written.
- Accuracy
- Are "facts" correct and verifiable? Does the information match that found in other reputable sources? Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof.
- Currency
- Look for publication/creation date. Does internal material reflect the "created" date? Remember that scholarly books take longer to get published than scholarly articles.
- Objectivity
- Does the author present only one side of an argument?
Further details and examples show on Cornette Library's Evaluating Your Sources page.
Scholarly Journals
One way to speed the evaluation process is to look for publications (print, database and online) which are scholarly. Several general guidelines help with this determination:
- Physical appearance
- Scholarly sources tend to use graphs and charts for illustration, more black and white, fewer ads, etc.
- Content
- Scholarly sources intended for experts, professionals in the field.
- Authors
- Scholarly authors are always identified. Education and affiliation often indicated, sometimes also publication record.
- Sourcing
- Scholarly writing always shows where information is obtained. May be identified as Bibliography, Reference List, Works Cited, footnotes, or endnotes.
- Review Process
- Scholarly writing is, at minimum, reviewed by editor with some expertise in the field. Peer-reviewed (or refereed) journals submit all content to a panel of experts in the field for blind review.
- Audience
- Scholarly writing is intended for other experts in the field, as opposed to the general or hobbyist audience for newsmagazines.
- Government documents
- Not normally considered scholarly (not research based), but ARE considered reliable sources for statistics, demographic information. May be print or online.
Listing of scholarly sources: check the publication title in Ulrich's Periodical Directory. Look for Document Type: Journal;Academic/Scholarly. For the highest quality, also look for Refereed:Yes
Further detail and examples provided on Cornette Library's Journals vs. Magazines web page.
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Reference Sources
- Excellent place to start research.
- Provide background information, not typically cited in upper division/graduate work.
- Include basic information sources like dictionaries, encyclopedias, bibliographies, chronologies, and research guides.
Subject Encyclopedias
- Provide in-depth, scholarly articles, focused on a specific subject or discipline. Often include bibliographies.
- Encyclopedia of Crime & Justice
- HV 6017 .E52 2002 Ref.
- Provides historical perspective, pro/con, and legal status. Includes domestic violence, crime causation, etc.
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Books
- Cornette Library's Online Catalog
- Includes books, government documents, videos, journal titles, etc. available throughout the Library. Suggested searches include:
- a keyword search for your subject, such as WOMEN CRIMINAL JUSTICE.
- the general LC subject heading POLICEWOMEN.
- the LC subject heading for a specific time and/or place such as FEMALE OFFENDERS REHABILITATION UNITED STATES.
To determine the most appropriate subject headings for your search, refer to the red Library of Congress Subject Headings near the Reference computers in the Library or search the online Library of Congress Authorities Catalog.
- WorldCat
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- Online catalog for libraries around the world.
- Lists Cornette Library books along with many more in other libraries.
- Search by keyword, author, title, or subject.
- Request books not in Cornette Library through the pre-filled Interlibrary loan form. Allow at least two weeks for the books to arrive.
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Journal, Magazine, & Newspaper Articles
Provide current information
- Library shelves contain more than 1500 bound and current journals. The print-only journal that is specifically devoted to the material covered in this class is:
- Women & Criminal Justice
- Microform (film or fiche) available for dozens of leading newspapers, as well as other periodicals.
- Databases index articles found in journals and magazines.
- Citation only;
- Citation and a short summary of the article (abstract);
- Full text;
- General, covering many kinds of topics, and specialized, for specific disciplines.
- For this assignment be sure to use scholarly sources.
How to Access Databases
- On-campus: In the library, the HELC, or the Buffalo Roaming wireless areas.
- Off-campus: Login with your Buff Advisor username (for example, js123456) and your Buff Advisor password (for example, buffaloes).
- Database citations not in full-text may be located in the library catalog, or the list of online journals.
- Use Interlibrary Loan to request articles inaccessible through Cornette library. Allow up to 1 week for articles (3 weeks for books) to arrive.
Which database?
- Power Search
- Search multiple databases with one entry. Keyword searching, cannot limit to scholarly journals. See "Custom Search" for additional database suggestions
- Sage Journals Online
- Full-text, scholarly journals with excellent criminal justice coverage.
- Web Of Science
- Citation index of important scholarly sources, with coverage from 1970-present. Full-text links via SFX.
- Digital Dissertations
- Dissertations on multiple subjects. Many are available for download in PDF format. Bibliography can be very useful for identifying relevant articles.
- Academic Search Complete
- A multidisciplinary database containing both citations and many articles in full-text on a variety of topics. Includes the journal Criminal Justice Ethics.
- LEXIS-NEXIS Academic
- Full-text database. Contains Crime and Justice, plus many Law Review's. Journals, magazines and newspapers.
Logo
- Displays in most of our databases. Links from a citation to one or more of the following:
- One or more links to full-text of the cited article,
- A link to a pre-set search of the Cornette Library catalog for the cited item,
- A link to a pre-filled Interlibrary Loan request form for the article, or
- A link to various help options.
- For more information see the tutorial Using SFX to Link to Articles
Need Help?
- Ask at the Reference Desk (first floor) or Periodicals Desk (second floor).
- Call 651-2215 during the hours Cornette Library is open.
- Use the online form to email a question 24/7.
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Government Documents
Cornette Library collects United States federal and Texas state documents on many topics.
- Most U.S. documents published since 1994 are listed in the Cornette Library's Online Catalog.
- For older documents, you will need to use the Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications.
- We also have British Parliamentary Papers from 1731-1978/79 in microform.
Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications
- Indexes all United States government documents made available through the Government Printing Office.
- Includes Congressional reports, hearings, debates, and records; judiciary materials; documents issued by executive departments (Defense, State, Labor, Office of the President, etc.).
- Dates available include:
- Documents/Reference (1913-present).
- Online via FirstSearch. (1976-present)
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Web Sites
- The World Wide Web is an excellent source of information.
- Not everything found on the Web is accurate.
- You must evaluate information on the Web.
SPECIALIZED SUBJECT
- National Criminal Justice Reference Service
- Contains text of numerous special reports on crime issues published by the U.S. Department of Justice.
- Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics
- Site offers keyword search and topic browse access to more than 600 tables from various governmental sources.
- Bureau of Justice Statistics
- Statistics on criminal offenders, victims, prison inmates, etc. collected by the U.S. Department of Justice
- Women and Criminal Justice
- Bibliographies and link collections for women as offenders, victims, and criminal justice professionals. Created by the Texas Woman's University Law Enforcement Management Institute
Web Guides
- Searchable lists of annotated web sites, discussion lists, and electronic journals that have met specific selection criteria.
- Scout Report Archives
- Scholarly. Keyword or advanced search. Results listed by relevance.
- INFOMINE Scholarly Internet Resource Collections
- Scholarly. Keyword search or browse by general subject area. Can limit to free sites.
- Librarians' Internet Index
- General public interest. Keyword search, or browse by general topic and subtopic.
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Citing Your Sources
Why must I cite the sources I use for research projects?
- To give credit to the author of the information you use.
- To avoid plagiarism (WTAMU Code of Student Life: Appendix I-Academic Integrity Code). Plagiarism is a serious offense that can result in a failing grade or worse!
- So that others can verify the information.
- To assist others in doing their own research.
CITATION MANUAL
- Dr. Price requires you to use the parenthetical reference/reference list method detailed in A manual for writers of term papers, theses and dissertations by Kate L. Turabian.
- A copy of A manual for writers of term papers, theses and dissertations is located at the Reference Desk. Use Chapters 10 and 11, and examples 14.39 and 14.40.
- Examples are available on our Citation Basics web page. Also look at the Citing Internet Sources page, and view the Turabian example from Georgetown University.
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Your Comments
- Suggestions for improvements?
- Particularly helpful items?
- Please email Mary Jarvis.
Thank you.
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