Using the topic you had approved by Dr. Merlo (e.g. sex offender registration), develop a research question. (See the video below for guidance.)
Example: What are the effects of sex offender registration policies on juvenile justice?
Locate key words in your research question. (See boldfaced words above.) You will use these key words as search terms.
Use the library catalog to find government documents, e-books, and print books on your topic.
When you visit one of the databases on the Library Databases page from an off-campus location, before you are taken to the database itself, you will be asked for a username and password. This is the same username and password you use to login to MyIUP.
Use the following databases to find law reviews and peer-reviewed journal articles for your research paper:
Campus Research is an easy-to-use online research service that provides college and university students with access to a comprehensive collection of law-related resources. Only the Law content is licensed by IUP Libraries. Those resources include: Analytical Sources and Primary Law Sources including American Jurisprudence 2d (Am Jur 2d). An encyclopedia that provides summary and analysis of all fields of American state and federal law. American Law Reports (ALR). ALR provides a continually updated series of articles (annotations) on legal topics discussed in key cases. More than 800 law reviews and journals. Law reviews are scholary journals published by most accredited law schools including Harvard Law Review, Yale Law Journal, American Journal of Legal History, and Stanford Law Review. United States Code Annotated (USCA). USCA combines the official text of the United States Code with relevant cases, historical notes, indexes, cross-references, and other annotations. All federal and state cases including U.S. Supreme Court cases. Easily accessible through West's National Reporter System, an exclusive system of reporting federal and state cases that is editorially enhanced for complete research. State statutes and regulations. Includes statutes from all 50 states and D.C. and administrative codes from all 44 states. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The full body of federal administrative regulations. Federal Register. Includes 50,000 pages of current regulatory, administrative, and executive materials generated by key federal entities.
Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text
Indexes major journals in criminology and related disciplines, extensive coverage of books, and unparalleled access to reports from government and nongovernmental agencies. Includes Full text. Uses the EBSCOhost interface.
Criminology: A Sage Full-Text Collection
The Sage Criminology Collection includes the full-text of 23 journals published by SAGE and participating societies, some journals going back 23 years, encompassing over 5,500 articles. It covers such subjects as Criminal Justice, Juvenile Delinquency, Juvenile Justice, Corrections, Penology, Policing, Forensic Psychology, and Family and Domestic Violence. The searchable database consists of bibliographic records (indexed summaries or abstracts) as well as the complete text of each journal article. Every bibliographic record in the Collection links to the appropriate full-text in PDF format.
ProQuest Criminal Justice Periodicals Index (PCJP)
An essential resource for both students and professionals in any criminal justice field. The ProQuest Criminal Justice Periodical Index (CJPI) is the most comprehensive database of its kind. Uses the Proquest interface.
Search these pre-approved websites for information on your topic: