crim 4384 statistics
TRANSCRIPT
Clarke Iakovakis | Research & Instruction Librarian | UHCL Neumann Library
Library Research for CRIM 4384: Statistics
Crime image courtesy Sivi Steys on Flickr. Licensed under CC-BY-SA
http://libguides.uhcl.edu/CRIM-SOCI4385
For me, the hardest part of research is…
a. Getting started
b. Finding relevant information
c. Writing the paper
d. Citing sources
e. None – research is easy
Outline for Today• Research is Inquiry• Determining Authority• Principles of Good Searching • BREAK• Finding articles & statistics• Citing sources
Section 1: Research is Inquiry
Screenshot from Sherlock © British Broadcasting Company. Retrieved from Tumblr
Research is an open-ended exploration and engagement with informationAnxiety is normal!Be open-minded—seek divergent perspectives and information that challenges your beliefs, and be skeptical
Curiosity Rover Self-Image courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems. Public Domain.
A literature review is part of the published work referencing related research, theory, and background information
A review of the literature (literature search) may be conducted to…◦ understand a topic◦ help you form a problem statement◦ provide confirmation of an already
existing hypothesis◦ analyze and interpret your own data◦ gain exposure to past, current, and
ongoing research about a subject you are exploring for research of your own
Reviewing literature
Primary, secondary, and tertiary sources
•Primary sources are the “raw material” or first-hand evidence•Secondary sources describe and interpret information from primary sources•Tertiary sources compile and summarize primary and secondary sources
Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. (1883). The Arrest.
Data vs. Statistics: What’s the difference?
DATA Collected as part of a study
CSV or Excel files, text, XML, databases
Contain individual observations
Come with documentation to understand
Often require preparation (also called “cleaning”)
Used as the “raw ingredients” for generating statistics
STATISTICS Results of data analysis
Tables, charts, maps, graphs
May describe what the data shows ◦ Frequency◦ Mean◦ Median
May go beyond the immediate data to find inferences
◦ Regression◦ Analysis of variance
Statistics or data?
A. Statistics
B. Data
Houston Police Department. (2014). May 2014 monthly uniform crime report by street. Retrieved from http://www.houstontx.gov/police/cs/xls/may14.xls.
Statistics or data?
B. Data
A. Statistics
Houston Police Department. (2014). May 2014 monthly uniform crime report city-wide summary. Retrieved from http://mycity.houstontx.gov/crime/ucrPage.aspx.
Section 2: Determining Authority
Benito Mussolini. Public domain image retrieved from Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives collection.
Authority is constructed and contextual“Authority” is a type of influence recognized or exerted in a communityDisciplines have acknowledged authorities—scholars, publications & processesApproach all information (“authoritative” or not) with informed skepticism.
What are some indicators you can use to help determine if information is valid?
CRAAP: Currency
Relevance
Authority
Accuracy
Purpose
Craps table image courtesy Lisa Brewster on Flickr. Licensed under CC-BY-SA
What is peer review? A process for establishing authority of scholarly research Experts review the original ideas to certify the accuracy, validity, and value of the results
Chubin, D. E., & Hackett, E. J. (2005). Peer Review. In C. Mitcham (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Science, Technology, and Ethics (Vol. 3, pp. 1390-1394). Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. Retrieved from http://libproxy.uhcl.edu/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX3434900491&v=2.1&u=txshracd2589&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w&asid=67e06d81c0d758521a67ba637722e45c
Periodicals (journals, magazines)
Peer-reviewedRefereedScholarlyAcademic
TradeProfessiona
lPractitione
rIndustry
General
Popular
Author credentials (usually universities; sometimes industry or government)
Journal information (name, volume, issue, year)
Abstract
Literature Review
Methodology
Anatomy of a scholarly articleTables and/or graphs
Establishing the validity of data is a bit trickier• Data are not typically “peer reviewed”—most journals do not require researchers to submit the full dataset
• Apply the CRAAP test
• Review the research methodology• Data collection• Data analysis• Data interpretation
When interpreting statistics, consider:
What is your research question or topic?
What is being measured (the unit of observation)?◦ Individual? Family? Household? Race? Nation? World?◦ Pay attention to the unit of measurement
What is the space? Are you comparing geographic areas?◦ County? State? World?
What is the time period?◦ 10 years ago? Today? Snapshot vs. across time (“longitudinal”)? Future?
Section 3: Principles of good searching
On the Scent. Image licensed CC-BY on Flickr by stephen bowler.
• Determine your research question1•Identify the key concepts2•List alternate keywords, synonyms, and related words3• Join terms and concepts with appropriate Boolean operators4•Make use of database’s limiters & suggested subject terms 5•Organize and cite your sources6
Search Process
One •What are some factors that play a role in shaping teenagers’ attitudes toward police officers?
Two •How do socio-economic status, neighborhood crime, education level, and previous interactions with police officers shape teenagers’ attitudes toward police officers?
Three •What is the influence of individual teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
1. Determine your research question
2. Identify the key concepts
Teenagers Police Attitudes Police contact
What is the influence of individual teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
Teenagers
Adolescents
YouthJuveniles
Delinquents
3. List alternate keywords, synonyms, and related words
OR
What is the influence of individual teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
Police
Law enforcemen
t
Peace officersCops
CorrectionsOR
3. List alternate keywords, synonyms, and related wordsWhat is the influence of individual
teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
Police contact
Police interaction
Police-commun
ity relations
Arrest
Questioning OR
interrogationOR
3. List alternate keywords, synonyms, and related wordsWhat is the influence of individual
teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
ANDOR
NOT
4. Join terms and concepts with appropriate Boolean operators
juvenilesteenagers adolescents
M EOR
teenagers OR juveniles OR adolescents
Police OR law enforcement OR corrections
teenagers OR juveniles OR adolescents
AND
AND
Which statement below will generate more search results?
A.
B.
Which search will find FEWER results?
A.B.
OR
teenagers
teenagers
police
police
ANDORem
Using a wildcard (*) will find a larger number of results
interrogate
interrogates
interrogating
interrogation
interrogator
interrogators
interrogat* * Search Tip
• State your research topic1•Identify the key concepts2•List alternate keywords, synonyms, and related words3• Join terms and concepts with appropriate Boolean operators4•Make use of database’s limiters & suggested subject terms 5•Organize and cite your sources6
Search Strategies
BreaktimePlease be back in 10 minutes
Image courtesy Archives and Special Collections at the University of Montana, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library
Section 4: Research Databases & Library Catalog
Screenshot from Wargames © United Artists. Retrieved from Tumblr
Why use a library when I have Google?
But wait…
tumblr
.gov Wikipedia
Subscription databases
Password-protected websites
restricted access
$$$
free
access
Illegal content
Classified documents
Surface Web
Deep Web
Amazon
cnn
ads
What are some sources of scholarly information?BooksReference worksPeer-reviewed journal articlesGray literatureReports (government,
non-governmental organizations)Theses & dissertationsConference proceedings
Archival resourcesResearch Data & Statistics
Portrait of a Scholar – RembrandtPublic Domain Image courtesy Wikimedia
Three
• What is the influence of individual teenagers’ past contact with police officers on their attitudes toward police?
Access a Criminology database (Criminal Justice Abstracts or Criminology: SAGE Journals) to find an article related to the following research question:
Currency
Relevance
Authority
Accuracy
Purpose
Sources for statistics Studies & research reports by non-governmental organizations
Official statistics collected by the government Polling organizations Peer reviewed journal articles Data repositories Textbooks & encyclopedias Newspapers & magazines (both print and online)
Which state executed the most prisoners in the last 35 years (1977-2011)?
E. Colorado D. VirginiaC. OklahomaB. FloridaA. Texas
Jury designed by Luis Prado from the Noun Project
Which state executed the most prisoners in the last 35 years (1977-2011)?
• Texas – 477
• Florida - 71
• Oklahoma - 96
• Virginia - 109
• Colorado - 1
Source: Bureau of Justice StatisticsRetrieved from Statistical Abstract of the United StatesLink
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
To connect to library databases from home
Log in using your UHCL ID and last name
Log in using your eservice account
Call the library and ask for a password
Google it
Log in using your Library barcode and last name
Section 5: Citing Sources
Dissect this citation Carr, P. J., Napolitano, L., & Keating, J. (2007). We never call the cops and here is why: A qualitative examination of legal cynicism in three Philadelphia neighborhoods. Criminology, 45(2), 445-480. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-9125.2007.00084.xWhat is the…
Journal name Volume number Issue number Authors
Article title Page number range Year of publication DOI
Enter article title
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