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Criminal Justice

Research Steps

Before starting your research, take a few moments to think about your assignment.

  • What key words or phrases define your topic?
  • Can you list some synonyms?
  • What types of materials are you looking for?
  • Are you looking for the latest information or can you use sources published within the last ten years?
Spending a few minutes thinking about your topic will save you lots of time when you begin your research.

Creating a Search Strategy

Knowing how to structure a search is key to retrieving relevant results and maximizing your research time. These brief videos will introduce you to the concept of topic mapping and provide you with some basic database search strategies. Although these videos were not produced by the HFU Library, the strategies described are applicable across all of HFU's Library databases. Have questions?  Contact us!

Types of Sources

In the field of Criminal Justice:

Primary Sources: include original research studies or original work generally published in scholarly, peer reviewed journals and books authored by a researcher or theorist. Literature reviews are NOT primary sources.

Secondary Sources: include literature reviews and books or other sources that summarize and "repackage" another's work.

Tertiary Sources: include encyclopedias and other reference sources that summarize, condense, and define other's work, theories, or ideas.

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