This guide will assist you in your research project. You will find searching techniques, database suggestions, and citation resources. 

If you have questions or need additional help, please contact me using the information in my profile box. I am YOUR librarian for this course, and I'm happy to help!

You may want to check out the general Criminal Justice course guide for additional resources:

Looking for background information on your theory?

Encyclopedias provide "getting started" information. You will usually be able to find information about the researchers associated with the theory, and major developments of the theory over time. Be aware that encyclopedias are not peer-reviewed research articles, they are reference books. Take the information you learn from these books and search for peer-reviewed resources written by the originators of the theory and additional research applying the theory. 

Keywords are the terms you use to search in the Libraries' databases. They distill your complex topic down into its most basic elements. You keywords should not be a sentence. 

Keep in mind that you can try many different keywords and can always look for new ones -- when you find articles, books, or other resources, see what keywords the database uses to describe the article. If you're stuck, these new keywords can help you find more information. 

If you are finding you get too many results (thousands) you may want to try adding a few more keywords to make your search more specific to a country, organization, or time period. Apply filters to restrict to certain kinds of results based on publication type, time period, etc. If you are not getting any results or only getting a handful of results, try using a fewer keywords, or try some broader terms.