JUS 301 / 501: Research Methods in Justice Studies

This guide supports students in JUS 301/501: Research Methods in Justice Studies. Find tutorials on research skills, guidance on conducting literature reviews, and access to key databases and resources for criminal justice research.

Selected databases for justice studies research

Academic Search Ultimate

Access to popular press magazines and peer-reviewed scholarly journals across various academic disciplines, including open-access journals and historic Associated Press videos.
Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text

This resource includes bibliographic records and full text of journals related to criminal justice and criminology. Subjects covered include: corrections, prisons, criminal investigations, forensic sciences, investigation, substance abuse, addiction, probation, and parole.

Coverage: 1968+
HeinOnline

Offers PDF full text of law reviews and journals, historical federal documents, classic legal texts from the 17th to early 20th centuries, U.S. treaties, Supreme Court cases in U.S. Reports, and Attorney General opinions.

Includes pre-1980 legal scholarship not found on Nexis Uni or Westlaw.
JSTOR

Access millions of articles, books, and primary sources, focusing on back issues of scholarly journals; an essential resource for research in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Includes AI assistant: JSTOR's interactive research tool.
SocIndex with Full Text

Covers a wide spectrum of disciplines like gender studies, justice studies, economics, psychology, and social work, with a strong focus on sociology and its sub-disciplines. Primarily consists of journal articles, along with books, working papers, dissertations, and conference proceedings. It also features profiles of prolific authors.
Sociological Abstracts
Coverage: 1963+
Maximum Concurrent Users: Unlimited
Covers journal articles, conference papers, books, dissertations, and conference papers, book reviews related theoretical & applied sociology, social science, & policy science. Topics include sociological aspects of anthropology, gender studies, gerontology, family studies, health, racial interactions, social psychology, social work, urban studies, etc.

Other relevant databases depending on topic

Black Life in America

Comprehensive coverage of the African American experience from earliest times to today. Sourced from nearly 20,000 American and global newspapers from 1704 to the present, including over 400 African American newspapers. Provides full-text searching as well as access to content by Topic, Event, and Eras in African American History. Updated daily.
Communication and Mass Media Complete (CMMC)

This database is a research and reference source in the fields of communication, journalism, and mass media. The database also covers some aspects of the field of advertising and related topics. The database indexes and abstracts journals and conference presentations.

Coverage: 1915+
Google Scholar (with Library Links)

Find scholarly literature, including peer-reviewed journal articles, books, theses and dissertations, conference papers, pre-prints, technical reports, and other publications for all research disciplines. The link enables ASU affiliates to include ASU Library’s full text and InterLibrary Loan Services in a search.
LGBTQ+ Social Justice & Culture

Global LGBTQ+ voices through personal narratives, media, and archives to support equity-focused research, advocacy, and historical understanding.
LGBTQ+ Source

The premier database for LGBTQ+ studies offers full-text scholarly and popular publications, primary sources, books, magazines, and newspapers, along with a specialized thesaurus featuring thousands of terms.
PAIS Index

Indexes global research on public policy and social issues, covering scholarly articles, books, government documents, grey literature, reports, and more. Content in multiple languages.

PAIS International (1976 to present) contains records for over half a million journal articles, books, government documents, statistical directories, grey literature, research reports, conference papers, web content, and more.
PAIS Archive (1915 to 1976) is a retrospective conversion of the PAIS Annual Cumulated Bulletin, volumes 1-62, published 1915-1976 and contains over 1.23 million records covering monographs, periodical articles, notes and announcements, and analytics.
Policy Commons

Access to global grey literature, including reports, papers, and datasets from think tanks, NGOs, and policy groups, supports research in public policy and social sciences.
Policy Commons includes a cross-search for the following modules:
- Global Think Tanks
  Search policy research and analysis from leading think tanks worldwide on international and domestic issues.
- North American City Reports
  Urban policy documents and reports from North American cities on climate change, public health, and social equity.
- Public Health and Social Care
  Find global research, policy, and reports on health systems, social care, and population well-being.
- World Cities and Local Governments
  Explore reports, plans, and data from city halls, councils, and regional governments around the globe.
- World Governments
  Access national government publications, data, and policy documents from countries across the world.
PsycINFO

Expertly indexed abstracts and citations for global peer-reviewed research in psychology and related behavioral, social science, and mental health fields.
Statista

A statistics portal that integrates data on markets, industries, media, business, finance, politics, population, opinion, lifestyles and a wide variety of other areas of interest. Provides ready-made charts, graphs, and tables. Includes AI assistant: ResearchAI
Student Activism (Reveal Digital)

Open-access archive featuring students’ leaflets, newsletters, protest materials, and personal papers that document student activism in U.S. higher education.
Women's Studies International

Covers core research on women's and gender studies worldwide, including feminist theory, LGBTQ+ studies, and historical perspectives.

Hints for Article Searching

AND Connector

Link concepts with the word AND. For example, a good way to find articles about the relationship between video games and the characteristics of the people who play them would be to search video games AND personality.

OR Connector

If there are different ways to say the same thing, consider using the linking word OR. For example, video games OR computer games.

Wildcard/Truncation

Adding an asterisk at the end of a word will get alternative word endings. A search on child* will find the word child, but will also find childhood and children. Very handy!

Peer-reviewed Search Option

Remember to click the box that says "peer-reviewed" (located directly under the search boxes). This will make sure you get the kind of research that you probably need for your assignment.

Search Help

If you are not finding what you are looking for, please ask for assistance. We are here to help you!