LibGuides: Behavioral Sciences: Criminal Justice

Available in the Library:

These books, along with many other titles, can be found in both the Reference and circulating sections of the Library. Click on the title to go the record in the Online Library Catalog

Beyond the prison industrial complex : crime and incarceration in the 21st century by Kevin Wehr
Call Number: HV 9471 .W44 2013
Publication Date: 2013
Criminal Psychology by Jacqueline B. Helfgott (Editor)
Call Number: REF HV 6080 .C7335 2013
Publication Date: 2013
Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement by Larry E. Sullivan (Editor); Marie Simonetti Rosen (Editor); M. R. Haberfeld (Editor); Dorothy Moses Schulz (Editor)
Call Number: REF HV 7921 .E53 2005
Publication Date: 2004-12-15
Falling back : incarceration and transitions to adulthood among urban youth by Jamie J. Feder
Call Number: HV 9106 .P5 F33 2013
Publication Date: 2013
Handbook of Forensic Sociology and Psychology by Stephen J. Morewitz (Editor); Mark L. Goldstein (Editor)
Call Number: REF RA 1148 .H36 2014
ISBN: 9781461471776
Publication Date: 2013-09-05
Handbook of transnational crime and justice by Philip L. Reichel
Call Number: HV 6252 .H36 2014
Publication Date: 2014
Juvenile delinquency by Donald J. Shoemaker
Call Number: HV 9069 .S524 2013
Publication Date: 2013
More God, less crime : why faith matters and how it could matter more by Byron R. Johnson
Call Number: BR 115 .J8 J64 2011
Publication Date: 2011
Youth Violence and Delinquency by Marilyn D. McShane (Editor); Frank P. Williams (Editor)
Call Number: REF HV 9104 .Y6854 2007
Publication Date: 2007-05-01

Library Databases

The following databases will provide useful information for your research in Criminal Justice:

Credo Reference This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to over 3.2 million entries from over 400 reference titles
Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text This link opens in a new window
Contains more than 400,000 records selected from the most important sources within the discipline. Subject areas covered include: criminology; criminal justice; criminal law and procedure; corrections and prisons; police and policing; criminal investigation; forensic sciences and investigation; history of crime; substance abuse and addiction; probation and parole.
Ebook Central This link opens in a new window
Contains over 130,000 full-text e-books in a wide variety of subjects and disciplines. There is a powerful user interface that includes highlighting, bookmarking and automatic citations.
EBSCOHost This link opens in a new window
EBSCOhost is the primary online journal and e-book platform at VFCC. It contains 28 multidisciplinary and subject-specific databases. The following databases within EBSOChost will be particularly helpful for research in Criminal Justice: Academic Search Complete; ATLA Religion; Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full-Text, e-Book Academic Collection; PsycArticles and SocINDEX.
Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new window
Opposing Viewpoints contains full-text resources on current issues. This online library investigates current issues and topics from a number of perspectives.
Gale OneFile: Criminal Justice This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive periodical content for researchers studying law, law enforcement, forensic science, terrorism, and more.
Gale OneFile: LegalTrac This link opens in a new window
Search index of prestigious and comprehensive legal content. Endorsed by the American Association of Law Libraries.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
This collection contains the complete archived holdings of over 1,100 scholarly, full-text journals. New titles and disciplines are added regularly. The capacity for searching across disciplines opens up vast possibilities for scholarship and research.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
LexisNexis Academic contains full-text documents from over 6,000 news, business, and legal publications. Behavioral Sciences researchers may find the legal information particularly useful.

General Websites

Here are some websites that will help as you research various aspects of criminal justice.

Crime and Safety Reports
Issued by the U.S. Department of State, the Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides information regarding security-related issues on a country-by-country basis.
Crime in the United States (Uniform Crime Reports)
The FBI releases an annual report of criminal trends in the U.S. Reports and statistics on the state, county, and municipal level are available from 1999-2013.
Federal Bureau of Investigation - Uniform Crime Reports Program
"The program was conceived in 1929 by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to meet the need for reliable uniform crime statistics for the nation." A primary source for criminal investigation.
National Criminal Justice Reference Service
NCJRS "is a federally funded resource offering justice and drug-related information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide." It is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Executive Office of the President.
National Institute of Corrections (NIC)
An agency of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, this U.S. Department of Justice department provides "training, technical assistance, information services and policy/program development assistance to federal, state, and local corrections agencies."
National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
The NIJ "is dedicated to improving knowledge and understanding of crime and justice issues through science."
Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)
OVC is a clearinghouse of information for victims of crime in all areas. Such issues include: identity theft, domestic violence, victims of mass violence, human trafficking, internet crimes and witness assistance.

Restorative Justice Websites

Eastern Mennonite University: Restorative Justice
EMU houses The Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice and The Center for Justice & Peacebuilding.
International Institute for Restorative Practices Graduate School (IIRP)
IIRP is dedicated to "... the advanced education of professionals at the graduate level and to the conduct of research that can develop the growing field of restorative practices, with the goal of positively influencing human behavior and strengthening civil society throughout the world."
Restorative Justice Online
RJO is a service of the Prison Fellowship International Centre for Justice and Reconciliation. "Its purpose is to be an authoritative, credible, non-partisan resource of information on restorative justice."

Corrections

National Institute of Justice: Offender Reentry
The NIJ supports research and evaluation of reentry-related issues.
National Reentry Resource Center
"The NRRC provides a one-stop, interactive source of current, evidence-based, and user friendly reentry information."
Pew Center on the States: Public Safety and Corrections
Funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, this site provides recent studies and reports in the field of corrections.
The Sentencing Project
Promotes reforms in sentencing law and practice and alternatives to incarceration.
Women's Prison Association
"WPA works with women at all stages of criminal justice involvement."
Policing the Police
This PBS Frontline documentary asks the question: "How do you transform a troubled police department?"

Federal and State Government Websites

Here are listed agencies, bureaus and offices of the federal government.

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Federal Bureau of Prisons
Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD)
The Commission helps coordinate the work of state and local criminal justice agencies. Its mission is to improve the criminal justice system in Pennsylvania.
United States Department of Homeland Security
United States Department of Justice (USDOJ)
An alphabetical listing of all agencies, bureaus and office within the DOJ. Links to each are included.
United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)
United States Secret Service

Juvenile Justice

Compendium of National Juvenile Justice Data Sets
"...an aid to investigations of juvenile offending, victimization, and contact with the juvenile justice system. "
National Center for Juvenile Justice
The NCJJ is the oldest juvenile justice research group in the United States. It conducts research and provides factual information to professionals in the juvenile court system.
National Gang Center
"The National Gang Center (NGC) assists policymakers, practitioners, and researchers in their efforts to reduce youth gang involvement and crime."
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
The OJJDP "strives to strengthen the juvenile justice system's efforts to protect public safety, hold offenders accountable, and provide services that address the needs of youth and their families."

Criminal Justice Statistics

Bureau of Justice Statistics
"The United States' primary source for criminal justice statistics." Information on crime, criminal offenders, victims of crime and governmental operations at all levels is provided.
Crimes Against Children Research Center: Statistics
Statistical information and research on child abduction, homicide, rape, assault, physical and sexual abuse.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Crime Statistics
A series of statistical crime reports and publications.
National Archive of Criminal Justice Data
"The mission of the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD) is to facilitate research in criminal justice and criminology." It also is the home site for the Terrorism and Preparedness Data Resource Center (TPDRC).
NationMaster: Crime Statistics
Crime levels of 132 countries are listed.
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics

International Websites

European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control (HEUNI)
Located in Finland, HEUNI is affiliated with the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Program. "The primary objective of HEUNI is to promote the international exchange of information on crime prevention and control among European countries."
INTERPOL
"INTERPOL is the world’s largest international police organization, with 190 member countries."
United Nations Office on Drug and Crime
UNODC is mandated to assist Member States in their struggle against illicit drugs, crime and terrorism
World Factbook of Criminal Justice Systems
The criminal justice systems of 45 countries are described.
World Prison Brief
The WPB provides information about prison systems and prison populations throughout the world.

Terrorism

Genocide Studies Program:at Yale University
Conducts research, seminars and conferences on the phenomenon of genocide.
Online Encyclopedia of Mass Violence
This site is a database that offers reliable historical description on massacres and genocides. Resources provided include chronological indexes, case studies, analytical contributions on socio-political violence in a given country, a glossary of the terms most often used in the field of genocide studies as well as papers written by authors in the field. Site is in French, some browsers can translate.
START: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism
Contains a large repository of information on terrorism. START includes the IVEO (Influencing Violent Extremist Organizations) Knowledge Matrix, and the Global Terrorism Database (GTD).
Terrorism and Preparedness Data Resource Center (TPDRC)
TPDRC collects and distributes information about domestic and international terrorism.

Library Director

Melanie Oestreich

Open Access Publications

Here are free, full-text publications from various professional associations.

American Probation and Parole Association Publications and Reports
Free brochures and reports on a wide variety of topics.
Criminologist Online
The official newsletter of the American Society of Criminology.
Doing What Works
Weekly newsletter from the International Community of Corrections Association.
Justice Information Research Network
Publications from the Justice Research and Statistics Association

Professional Associations

Here are listed professional associations and organizations. Visit these sites for additional information on various aspects of criminal justice.This is not an exhaustive listing.

Webcasts

Forensicweek
Forensicweek.com streams a show every week that you can watch on their YouTube channel.