Identify a topic related to the field of criminal justice that is of particular interest to you. You should read
Identify a topic related to the field of criminal justice that is of particular interest to you. You should read
previous research, reports, analyze tables and statistics to gain a full understanding of your topic. Compose a
well thought out essay that includes an introduction to the topic, a thesis/position, a logical presentation of your
evidence, and a conclusion.
This paper will be start, however, start with a cover page that provides the following information: Title (be
original), Student’s Name, Course and Section, Professor’s Name, and Semester. The next few sections will
start on the page after the cover page.
The Introduction (1 page):
The introduction section of your paper should present your topic to the audience. This section brings the topic to
center stage and provides the audience with why they should care about the topic, how does the topic fit within
the criminal justice scope, and lastly, but potentially most importantly, why the topic is important. This section
is concluded by providing a thesis statement, or the purpose of the essay. For example, if you are writing about
the struggles of re-entry, you might say “Given the prevalence of recidivism in the United States, this paper
seeks to illustrate the barriers that former offenders face when returning to society.” This statement sets the tone
for the remainder of your paper and provides a clear statement of what you will be talking about in the next few
pages.
The Literature Review (2 pages):
This is the heart of your paper. You just made this claim in the introduction that your topic is important to the
reader, the criminal justice system now show them why. The purpose of a literature review is to inform the
audience of previous research on your topic. It is important that your literature review be focused narrowly on
previous research that has direct relevance to your topic. In order to provide a general understanding of the
topic, you need to cite a minimum of 5 peer-reviewed journal articles.
When writing your literature review, avoid using a “note card” style. Do not provide a paragraph on
each of the major articles or books. Instead, organize your paragraphs around the major issues (use headings
or subheadings to organize your paper) related to your topic. To continue with the earlier example, you may
consider focusing on issues related to employment, transportation, and housing and re-entry. Let these issues be
the subheadings for the body of your paper.
This section should also be written as if you are presenting themes and subthemes from previous research.
Instead of stating what each study has done in the past, literature reviews should be written in a manner that
discusses how the overall literature are similar or different from each other. For example, “The majority of
studies on female homicide offenders have found….” Another example, “Although previous research has
indicated mixed results in regards to reentry treatment program within prison, positive effects include…” You
can discuss one or two studies specifically once you have provided information about the overall research in the
area to support and provide evidence of your claims.
In essence, your literature review has several functions:
CJS 270
• Gives credit to previous bodies of work and researchers
• Provides a more detail understanding of your topic
• Demonstrates your understanding of previous research on the topic
• Indicates your ability to critically evaluate the literature
• Indicates your ability to integrate and synthesize previous literature
Pay close attention to the following:
• Organization and structure of the section (headings/subheadings, paragraphs, etc.)
• Ensure focus, unity, and coherence
• CITE, CITE, CITE!!! However, avoid using quotes (paraphrase instead)
• Be sure your paragraphs are a minimum of three sentences
• Avoid using secondary sources. In fact, do not use cite unless you have actually read the article.
• Pay close attention to your tenses
The Conclusion (1 page):
This section should start by refocusing the audience’s attention to your thesis statement. Restate the thesis
statement (not word for word) and then wrap-up why this is actually a problem. Provide an explanation of the
significance of your topic based on what you stated in your literature review. Why is this important? Why
should this issue be addressed? This section allows you to take what you have explained within the literature
review and provide some approaches on how to address the issue. For example, maybe you would state that
“Given what previous research has concluded on post-release employment, correctional systems may consider
increasing educational modules on job readiness and transferable skills within pre-release training.”
References:
All sources that are cited in the text must be included in the references section at the end of the paper.
References are also often referred to as works cited or bibliographies. Be sure that you consistently use APA 7th
Edition formatting for the paper and the references. As noted in the literature review section, you must cite a
minimum of 5 peer-reviewed journal articles.
The critical issues paper should be a minimum of 4 pages (title page and reference section are not
included within this page count)
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