Basic Legal Research For Criminal Justice And The Social Sciences

This essential primer on legal research is written specifically for criminal justice and social sciences students. The book's basic, how-to approach makes it suitable not only as a guiding text for research courses, but also as a key supplementary text for courses in which legal research is a secondary requirement. Stripped of the cumbersome information found in similar texts for legal students, this slim essentials book gives criminal justice and social sciences students the tools they need for successful research.

Research Methods for Criminal Justice and the Social Sciences combines a traditional research book with exercises that allow students to experience research in a controlled environment. It is a companion methods/manual for use with most traditional social scientific research textbooks. This book offers readers basic information about methodological concerns (brief readings); and a variety of practices exercises relating to those readings. Some features of this book: Each chapter begins with a BRIEF discussion of the elements relevant to a basic understanding of research methods After each section of each chapter are several abstracted reprints containing basic intros of published articles Each reading is then followed with an Application Exercise which relates to the methodological procedure in the abstracted reprint...all exercises were designed to be completed by college students amd allows them to get their "hands dirty with the This is a perfect resource for individuals interested in the field of criminal justice, criminology, or sociology.

Designed for the introductory-level statistics course in criminology, criminal justice, sociology and related social sciences, this text is adapted from Walker's Statistics in Criminology and Criminal Justice, Third Edition. Understanding Statistics provides a solid overview of the subject by taking the basic elements from the chapters covering univariate, bivariate, and inferential statistics while retaining the foundational discussions and interpretations. The material is presented in a clear and easy-to-understand format and focuses on calculating the basic formulas in statistics yet preserves enough advanced material to prepare students for further study.Understanding Statistics boasts a variety of in-text study aids, such as key terms, equation summaries, exercises, end-of-chapter references, and suggested readings; as well as a collection of online study tools housed on the dedicated student companion website. The student-friendly presentation of the material coupled with the rich variety of student and instructor resources make Understanding Statistics the ideal introductory statistics text for undergraduate students!Every new printed copy is packaged with full student access to the student companion website featuring a a rich variety of study tools! (eBook version does not include access to the student companion website. Standalone access can be purchased here http://www.jblearning.com/catalog/9781449649234/)The latest version of SPSS 18.0 is available as a bundle.Instructor Resources:-Microsoft PowerPoint lecture slides-Instructor manual with answers to the exercises and pre-tests-Microsoft Excel and SPSS data sets-Test BankStudent Resources:-Microsoft and Excel SPSS data sets-Companion website featuring:*interactive flashcards*interactive glossary*mutliple choice questions*fill-in-the-blank questions*practice quiz (with answers)*pre-tests (with answers)*tests (with answers)*student data sets, in Excel and SPSS, that correlate to the chapter material*weblinks*suggested further reading

Introduces students to legalistic, theoretical, empirical, comparative and cross-disciplinary research methods, grounded in working examplesNew for this editionNew chapter on inter- and cross-disciplinary research essential reading for international students and students with a non-law first degree undertaking research in the areas of law, criminology, psychology and sociologyResearch ethics has been expanded to a full chapter that includes current plagiarism and imperfect disclosureBrings existing chapters up to date with the newest thinking in legal researchDrawing on actual research projects, Research Methods for Law discusses how legal research as process impacts on research as product. The author team has a broad range of teaching and research experience in law, criminal justice and socio-legal studies, and give examples from real-life research products to illustrate the theory.

"This book fills a gap in the field of criminal justice and law and society. It integrates legal cases and empirical research on social science questions confronted by the criminal courts. In other words, it examines how social science impacts criminal law and procedure. The book is organized around the criminal court process beginning with issues related to pretrial proceedings and ending with issues concerning sentencing. Specifically, the book provides an introduction to the history of social science used by the courts and the types of social science admitted as evidence in the courts. The chapters that follow provide seminal legal cases and empirical, social science research on a variety of topics ranging from pretrial publicity and racial profiling to Megan's Law and the death penalty. Smith introduces students to the "law in action" by demonstrating how social science influences the courts and the courts influence society. Moreover, students are given the opportunity to critically review court opinions and social science studies that test some of the assumptions relied on by the courts in rendering their decisions"--

Explaining in clear terms some of the main methodological approaches to legal research, the chapters in this edited collection are written by specialists in their fields, researching in a variety of jurisdictions. Covering a range of topics from Feminist Approaches to Law and Economics, each contributor addresses the topic of ‘lay decision makers in the legal system’ from their particular methodological perspective, explaining how they would approach the issue and discussing the suitability of their particular method. This focus on one main topic allows the reader to draw comparisons between methods with relative ease. The broad range of contributors makes Research Methods in Law well suited to an international audience, and it is ideal reading for PhD students in law, undergraduate dissertation students in law, LL.M Research students and early year researchers.

A brief text based on Maxfield/Babbie's best-selling, RESEARCH METHODS FOR CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND CRIMINOLOGY, Fourth Edition, this "basics edition" combines accessibility and a conversational writing-style with Michael G. Maxfield's expertise in criminology and criminal justice. In just 12 chapters the text features criminal justice examples of methodology in the field and utilizes real data. This basics edition also includes coverage of ethics, causation, validity, and research design, especially in the discussion of field research.