While the scientific method might not be the first thing that springs to mind when you think about the criminal justice system, this systematic approach to fact-based examination and analysis is extremely helpful when it comes to solving criminal cases, understanding criminal behavior, and instituting public policies that address issues related to crime.
Before tackling the four principal categories of criminal justice research, let us briefly discuss why research studies are essential in the worlds of criminology, law enforcement, judicial oversight, and corrections/rehabilitation.
The Overarching Purpose of Criminal Justice Research
Research in criminal justice is used to make individual cases and entire systems of criminal justice more effective, efficient, impartial, and fair. Many diverse types of criminal justice professionals consider evidence-based research an incredibly important part of their jobs.
Why Research Is Important in Criminal Justice
While the link between empirical scientific research and professional decision-making is abundantly clear in fields such as healthcare, it is far easier to disregard scientific research as unreliable or unnecessary in criminal justice matters. For this reason, the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ) has noted a severe under-utilization of research-based evidence in both the policy and practice of criminal justice.
However, the CJCJ joins most criminal justice organizations and authorities in asserting that expertly designed, implemented, and conducted research is essential in the criminal justice space. Because empirical research is based on objective facts, the results obtained allow criminal justice professionals to make far more impartial and logical decisions in a field that places an extraordinarily high value on such qualities.
The Role of Research
Depending on their professional responsibilities and the task at hand, individuals and organizations in the criminal justice field may employ research to meet any number of objectives. From examining the latest industry publications to conducting in-depth surveys, research takes a variety of forms to serve an even wider variety of functions within the criminal justice system.
By correctly applying research methods, criminal justice professionals can formulate research questions, design studies, collect and analyze data and draft research reports. These skills are highly valued in the field because they generate new knowledge that can improve strategies or systems. Research is a significant way to contribute to a more effective and equitable justice system.
Who Conducts Criminal Justice Research?
From criminal investigators and attorneys to justice system administrators and policymakers, many professionals in the criminal justice field conduct and rely upon several types of research. Some research is focused on practical application while other research is more interested in academic literature. As a criminal justice researcher, you might collaborate with law enforcement agencies, other organizations, and private individuals to investigate crimes and identify important criminal trends. Depending on your academic concentration and career interest, you might focus on cybersecurity, white-collar crime, human trafficking, or any number of specialized research areas. You might choose to focus on individual casework or larger issues, such as general criminal behavior or criminal justice reform.
Research Process in Criminal Justice
Due to the many roles and diverse professional applications of criminal justice research, it requires a broad spectrum of processes to meet the specific goals and demands of the situation at hand. It is up to individual researchers to apply the right research method for their purposes.
All research processes can be divided into two broad categories: quantitative and qualitative. Dealing with numerical evidence and the generation of statistics, quantitative research methods include survey studies and the meta-analysis of previously published data. Qualitative research methods, by contrast, focus less on raw information and more on life experiences. Common processes used in qualitative research include interviewing and direct observation.
Gathering Data
Whether accomplished through surveys, interviews, databases, or any other processes, gathering information is essential in all criminal justice enterprises. Beyond its indispensable role in furthering individual criminal cases, data collection spurs problem identification and improvement measures in the overall justice system. By collecting crime rates, risk assessment and police resource statistics, researchers can solve a range of problems by pinpointing key systemic measures of quality, efficiency, and impartiality.
Research Theory
Depending on the specific research questions asked, professionals may turn to any number of criminology theories to find answers. Some of these research theories relate directly to criminal investigation, while others are better suited to policymaking. There are also research theories that center around criminal psychology and behavioral impulses, as well as patterns of criminal activity within society.
Four Purposes of Criminal Justice Research
The wide range of research theories and methods in the criminal justice field can be a bit daunting to contemplate. However, it is easy to classify criminal justice research according to the kind of information it strives to obtain. At its heart, all research in the criminal justice field can be divided according to purpose into one of the four following categories:
1. Exploration
Exploratory criminal justice research aims to investigate a case or subject area that is little understood or has yet to be broadly studied. In individual case studies, this often means determining the underlying causes of criminal behavior.
2. Description
Descriptive criminal justice research aims to define and explain the subject under study. This might involve describing the common characteristics of criminal offenders or the criminal environment in each neighborhood.
3. Explanation
Explanatory criminal justice research aims to identify the causes and effects associated with the subject under study. It can answer questions such as why certain people become career criminals and why certain areas have higher crime rates than others.
4. Evaluation
Evaluative criminal justice research aims to determine the effectiveness of interventions, programs, or policies. The chief goals of this type of research are to better prevent crime and engender improvement in the criminal justice system.
No matter which of the four formal purposes of research you may pursue, all criminal justice research leads to professional and personal growth for the researcher and the field itself. Through your research, you may meet people and develop new connections, have them published in a journal, build a name for yourself in the field, and contribute to future research.
When to Conduct Each Research Type
To get a better idea about what each of these research types of entails, it may be helpful to take a closer look at when criminal justice professionals tend to employ them.
1. Exploration
To identify clear research questions and generate educated, viable hypotheses, exploratory research is often used to lay the proper groundwork at the very beginning of criminal justice research projects. Professionals who commonly use exploratory research include law enforcement officers, criminal investigators and prosecuting and defense attorneys.
2. Description
Useful in all corners of the criminal justice field, descriptive research is useful whenever a criminal justice professional needs to define and explain a phenomenon truthfully and precisely. Criminologists might turn to descriptive research when studying crime patterns over time, while attorneys might use it to collect relevant facts about cases under their review.
3. Explanation
Like descriptive research, explanatory research is widely used by a broad spectrum of criminal justice professionals for a variety of reasons. This is because understanding the underlying causes of specific actions or phenomena is so essential throughout the criminal justice field. In addition to general criminology researchers, all types of law enforcement and justice system workers use explanatory research to identify and understand the root causes of crime.
4. Evaluation
Typically conducted to assess the quality of a policy or program currently in effect, evaluative research is particularly useful to leaders in the criminal justice system. By evaluating key criteria that might range from crime rates to court delays, these leaders can do their part to improve the criminal justice system. Judicial administrators, as well as top law enforcement and corrections officials, can benefit from constantly evaluating the operations under their authority. Furthermore, elected government representatives and other policymakers are wise to employ evaluative research when making decisions regarding criminal justice.
Limitations of Criminology Research
Beyond the reluctance of some officials to use evidence-based research, many other barriers can derail the research process at any time. At its very heart, the field of criminal justice even lacks a clear definition of the word “crime.” This makes gathering information about specific criminal acts difficult, if not impossible, from the outset.
Other limitations of criminal justice research include its highly specific nature. For example, criminology studies are specific to the unique geographic location in which they occur. This makes implementing widespread changes quite difficult because policies that met with success in one area could fail in another. This is also true of successful solutions that often fail to scale within other judicial systems and social structures.
Start Your Criminal Justice Research at Keiser!
If you are interested in criminal justice research or criminal justice in general, you may want to consider a career in this highly challenging yet rewarding field. Or you are already a working criminal justice professional with a bachelor’s degree or higher, you may want to consider furthering your career with a specific focus in research.
In either case, you can further your education with a graduate program from Keiser University Graduate School. A firm reliance on empirical research plays a prominent role in all of Keiser’s criminal justice program offerings, including our Master of Arts in Criminal Justice (MACJ), Doctor of Criminal Justice (DCJ), and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Criminal Justice and Criminology programs.
At Keiser, we are fully committed to you and pride ourselves in putting our students first. We offer small class sizes with personalized instruction and are here to answer your questions. Request info today to find the right program for you!
