• Reference Resources
• Finding Books
• Finding Articles
• Web Resources
• Tips

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Reference Resources

The library has many reference resources (dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, etc.) that will help you find background information on topics in Criminal Justice and related fields.  Selected resources are listed below.  Look on the shelves near these books; there may be similar books nearby with helpful information.

• Encyclopedia of Criminology & Deviant Behavior - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 6017 .E53 2001
• Encyclopedia of Forensic Sciences - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 8073 .E53 2000
• Encyclopedia of Sociology - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:  HM 425 .E5 2000
• Encyclopedia of Drugs, Alcohol & Addictive... - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:  HV 5804 .E53 2000
• Encyclopedia of Crime & Justice - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:  HV 6017 .E52 2002
• Atlas of Crime - Middle Level, Reference Shelves:  HV 6783 .A85 2000
• The Handbook of Crime & Punishment - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 6789 .H25 1998
• The Oxford Handbook of Criminology - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 6025 .O87 1997
• The Dictionary of Criminal Justice - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 7411 .R87 1994
• The Encyclopedia of Police Science - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 7901 .E53 1995
• Encyclopedia of American Prisons - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 9471 .E425 1996
• Black's Law Dictionary - Middle Level, Ask at Reference Desk
• West's Encyclopedia of American Law - Middle Level, Reference Table 2B: KF 154 .W47 1997
• Criminal and Civil Investigation Handbook - Middle Level, Reference Shelves: HV 8073 .C694 1993
• Federal Sentencing Guidelines Manual - Middle Level, Reference East Wall: KF 9685 .F42 2000
• Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics - Middle Level, Reference Table 5B: J 29.9/6
• Forensic Pathology, A Color Atlas - Middle Level, Reference Computers: Ask at Reference Desk

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Finding Books

Online Catalogs:

Use library online catalogs to find availability and location of books and other media:

• WSU Stewart Library Online Catalog (iPac) - catalog for WSU's library
• Utah Library Catalogs - links to catalogs for other libraries in Utah

Browse the Shelves:

Most of the books on Criminal Justice are located on the Top Level of the library in the General Collection under the call number HV.  Books of interest may also be found under HM [Sociology], HV [Social Work], KF [Law], RA [Forensic Medicine], and BF [Psychology].

Bibliographies:

When you find a good book or article, check the bibliography to identify other books and articles on your subject.

Interlibrary Loan: 

If we do not own a particular book you need, we will borrow it for you from another library through Interlibrary Loan.

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Finding Articles

Online Article Databases: 

Use Social and Behavior Sciences article databases to find magazine and journal articles by subject or keyword.  Criminal Justice Abstracts is a good place to start, although it doesn't provide full-text articles.

Newspaper Databases:

Use News article databases to find newspaper articles by subject or keyword.

Electronic Journals: 

The library also provides access to many full-text electronic journals in Criminal Justice and related fields.  All of these allow you to browse the table of contents of journal issues and many allow you to search all available issues by keyword.  You can also search our list of electronic journals by title or subject.

Browse Current Periodicals:

Current issues of magazines and journals in Criminal Justice and related fields are found in the HV, K, and RA section of the Current Periodicals Area on the Middle Level of the library.  Bound volumes of older issues are shelved upstairs in the General Collection.

Bibliographies: 

When you find a good book or article, check the bibliography to identify other books and articles on your subject.

Interlibrary Loan: 

If the article you need is not available in our library, we will obtain a copy of it for you from another library through Interlibrary Loan.

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Web Resources

A good place to begin is the Stewart Library's list of web resources in Criminal Justice.  Most of the sites listed will provide links to additional sites, so explore!  Use Internet search engines to find additional information.

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Research Tips

As you do your research, keep the following tips in mind:

• Clearly identify your information need
• Identify key words and search terms to match your topic
• Develop search statements using advanced search techniques
  • Boolean logic, adjacency searching and truncation
• Use the Online catalog to find books
• Use Social and Behavioral Sciences article databases to find magazine and  journal articles
• Go back to the online catalog to see if the journals are in Stewart Library and where they are located
• Use Interlibrary loan to get materials that are not in Stewart Library
• Use search engines to find Web information
• Carefully evaluate the information you find for usefulness and quality
• Revise your search terms and strategy to expand or narrow your results, be creative, look in other areas
• Once you have found information from an Internet site you can Email the documents to yourself, print or save them to a floppy disk 
• Use appropriate style to document and cite research
• Ask for HELP via phone or email