University of Central Oklahoma
School of Criminal Justice
Spring 2015
CJ 4113 – Research Methods of Criminal Justice (CRN 27210)
Tuesdays & Thursdays 8:00 am – 9:15 am
Liberal Arts 237
Melissa Smith, M.A., Ph.D. in progress
Office Phone: 974-5578
Office Location: COM 115A
Email: msmith72@uco.edu
Office Hours: Mondays & Wednesdays 2:30-5:00pm and by appointment
Course Description & Prerequisites from UCO Catalog:
This course is primarily designed to acquaint students with quantitative and qualitative research
methodologies, including an in-depth analysis of the following: conceptualization of research,
type of sampling strategies, data collection methods, research design and proposal writing.
Prerequisite(s): ENG 1113, 1213, (CJ 1413 and SOC 3633 with minimum grades of “C”).
Enrollment open to criminal justice majors only with senior standing.
Course Objectives:
 Identify the purposes of conducting scientific research and address methodological issues
necessary for conducting and critically analyzing criminological research
 Know the various forms of data collection and sampling techniques used in criminal
justice research
 Examine general issues in research designs, including criteria for causality, types of
validity, units of analysis, different types of research design, and stages in the research
process
 Understand issues related to conceptualization and measurement of topics of interest in
criminal justice
 Describe the diverse ways crime is measured and be familiar with the strengths and
limitations of each method
 Understand the different types of data used in criminological research and the key issues
associated with evaluation research, policy analysis and general analyses of
criminological data
Transformational Learning Objectives: The University of Central Oklahoma is a learningcentered organization committed to transformative education through the “Central Six,” which
include Discipline Knowledge; Leadership; Problem Solving (Research, Scholarly and Creative
Activities); Service Learning and Civic Engagement; Global and Cultural Competencies; and
Health and Wellness.
This course addresses one of the university’s transformative learning goals: problem solving
through research, scholarly, and creative activities. Problem solving through scholarly and
creative pursuits will be addressed through the design of an original research proposal.
Required Texts for Course:
1
(1) Maxfield, M.G. and Babbie, E.R. (2012). Basics of research methods. Third
Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
ISBN: 978-1-111-34691-1
(2) Ireland, C., Berg, B.L., and Mutchnick, R.J. (2010). Research methods for criminal
justice and the social sciences: Practice and applications. Boston: Prentice Hall.
ISBN: 978-0-13-501877-4
Course Format: This class is lecture based, but requires students to complete the readings prior
to lectures. Additionally, students are expected to participate in class discussion. Students will
take 2 exams and 5 quizzes during the semester. Students will display their knowledge of
research methods through preparing a research proposal and presenting their proposal to the
class.
Exams: Two exams – each will contain 50 multiple-choice questions.
Research Proposal: Students are required to select a topic and design an original research study
proposal. Proposals should be 10-12 pages in length (not including the cover page, table of
contents, reference pages, or appendices). Proposal topics are due Tuesday, April 21st in class.
See the research proposal guidelines handout for the specific criteria for research proposals.
Presentation of Proposal: Students are required to present their research proposal to the class.
There will be two presentations of the proposal. First, students will give a mid-semester
presentation about their preliminary design. This presentation should include a brief overview on
the current literature of their chosen topic and a brief description of the research design they plan
to utilize; this presentation should be 5 minutes (worth 10 points of your presentation score). The
second presentation will be over the completed proposal; this presentation should be 15-20
minutes long and include a PowerPoint (worth 40 points of your participation score).
Participation: Participation points will be based upon peer discussions of proposals, individual
contribution, and peer evaluation. There are days designated to group work on the proposal (see
the tentative schedule). If a student is absent on a designated group day he or she will be
deducted 10 points; however, if the student submits a one-page, double spaced, typed Word
document detailing what they would have discussed with their group, they may not receive the
full deduction, and may not be deducted any points. The point deduction will be dependent upon
the quality of the paper submitted. The make-up paper must be received by all group members
and the professor by e-mail within 24 hours of the absence.
Quizzes: Five in-class quizzes will be given. Quizzes will cover assigned readings (see tentative
schedule for assigned readings).
2
Grading Criteria:
Exam I
100
Exam II
100
Research
Proposals
200
Participation
50
Quizzes (5 @ 20
points each)
100
Presentations
TOTAL
A
537-600 points (90-100%)
B
477-536 points (80-89%)
C
417-476 points (70-79%)
50
D
357-416 points (60-69%)
600
F
0-356 points (59% and below)
Tentative Schedule (the professor reserves the right to make changes to this schedule):
Tuesday, January 13
Introduction to Course – Importance of
Research
Thursday, January 15
APA Style
Finding and Reading Academic Journals
Tuesday, January 20
Quiz 1 – Chapter 1 (Maxfield & Babbie)
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 1 – Criminal
Justice and Scientific Inquiry
Thursday, January 22
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 1 – Criminal
Justice and Scientific Inquiry
Tuesday, January 27
Ireland et al. Chapter 1
Thursday, January 29
Quiz 2 – Chapter 2 (Maxfield and Babbie)
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 2 – Ethics and
Criminal Justice
*Proposal Topic Due in Class
3
Tuesday, February 3
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 2 – Ethics and
Criminal Justice
*Contracts Due in Class with all Signatures
Thursday, February 5
Ireland et al. Chapter 2
Group Day
Tuesday, February 10
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 3 – General
Issues in Research Design
Thursday, February 12
Quiz 3 – Chapter 4 (Maxfield & Babbie)
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 4 – Concepts,
Operationalization, and Measurement
Tuesday, February 17
Mismeasure of Crime Lecture
Ireland et al. Chapter 3
Thursday, February 19
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 5 –
Experimental and Quasi-Experimental
Design
Tuesday, February 24
Ireland et al. Chapter 4
Thursday, February 26
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 6 – Sampling
Tuesday, March 3
Ireland et al. Chapter 5
Thursday, March 5
Mid-semester presentations
Group Day
Tuesday, March 10
Midterm Exam (Maxfield & Babbie:
Chapters 1-6)
Thursday, March 12
CJ Assessment Exam
Tuesday, March 17
Spring Break – No Class
Thursday, March 19
Spring Break – No Class
Tuesday, March 24
Quiz 4 – Chapter 7 (Maxfield & Babbie)
Chapter 7 – Survey Research
Thursday, March 26
Ireland et al. Chapter 6
4
Tuesday, March 31
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 8 – Field
Research
Thursday, April 2
Group Day
Tuesday, April 7
Quiz 5 – Chapter 9 (Maxfield & Babbie)
Chapter 9 – Agency Records, Content
Analysis, and Secondary Data
Thursday, April 9
Group Day
Tuesday, April 14
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 10 –
Evaluation Research and Problem Analysis
Thursday, April 16
Group Day
Tuesday, April 21
All proposals due at the beginning of class.
Students will turn in paper copies of their
proposal at the beginning of class.
Presentations
Thursday, April 23
Presentations
Tuesday, April 28
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 11 –
Interpreting Data
Thursday, April 30
Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 11 –
Interpreting Data
Thursday, May 7
7:00 am – 8:50 am
Final Exam (Maxfield & Babbie: Chapter 711)
5
Policies and Expectations:
Attendance: Any student who misses more than 30% of the legal class periods is subject to the
grade of “F” regardless of assignment and test scores. Quizzes can only be made up if the
absence is excused.
Expectation of Work OSHRE II-2-34 Statement
It is expected that a full-time college student will spend time each week in class attendance and
study out of class approaching a 40-hour work week. A person employed on a full-time basis
should not simultaneously expect to maintain a full-time schedule. At the undergraduate level,
this means that for each hour in class, a student is expected to spend at least two hours doing
homework.
Make-Ups: Exams will be taken at scheduled times unless arrangements are made with the
professor. Students who miss exams due to an excused absence (e.g. death in the family or
documented illnesses) will be allowed to take a make-up exam. If at all possible the student
should contact the professor within 24 hours of the original exam date. If possible, please notify
the professor before the scheduled exam. The professor reserves the right to make all make-up
exams 100% essay exams. The professor also reserves the right to issue a zero to any student not
adhering to this policy.
Late Assignments: Late assignments will not be accepted. Quizzes are in-class only. Quizzes may
only be made up if proper documentation (i.e. doctor’s note) is presented to the professor.
Academic Integrity: Each student is expected to engage in all academic pursuits in a manner that
is above reproach. Students are expected to maintain complete honesty and integrity in the
academic experiences both in and out of the classroom. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not
confined to: plagiarizing; cheating on tests or examinations; turning in counterfeit reports, tests,
and papers; stealing tests or other academic material; knowingly falsifying academic records or
documents of the institution; accessing a student's confidential academic records without
authorization; disclosing confidential academic information without authorization; and, turning
in the same work to more than one class without informing the instructors involved. Any student
found responsible of academic dishonesty will be subject to disciplinary action. Violation of
these expectations, as specified above and in sections III, IV, and V of the Student Handbook,
may result in penalties up to and / or including expulsion from the University.
UCO subscribes to the Turnitin.com plagiarism prevention service. Students agree that by taking
this course, all required assignments may be subject to submission for textual similarity review
to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted assignments will be included as
source documents in the Turnitin.com restricted access reference database for the purpose of
detecting plagiarism of such assignments. Use of the Turnitin.com service is subject to the Terms
and Conditions of Use posted on the Turnitin.com website. Turnitin.com is just one of various
plagiarism prevention tools and methods which may be utilized by your faculty instructor during
6
the terms of the semesters. In the UCO Student Handbook, there is a process for contesting any
plagiarism allegations against you.
Students with Disabilities: The University of Central Oklahoma complies with Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Students with
disabilities who need special accommodations must make their requests by contacting Disability
Support Services at (405) 974-2516. The DSS Office is located in the Nigh University Center,
Room 309. Students should also notify the instructor of special accommodation needs by the end
of the first week of class.
To access the Student Information Sheet and Syllabus Attachment, please go to:
http://www.uco.edu/academic-affairs/faculty-staff/syllabus.asp
Expectations: Students are expected to come to class prepared. Students should have read the
assigned chapter/material prior to that day’s class and be ready to discuss the material.
7