CMRJ501 I001 Winter 2026 Week 5

Explain how criminology research has produced scientific findings that are used by policymakers to make informed decisions. The purpose of this assignment is for each student to demonstrate original critical thinking on criminology research, the published scholarly literature, and how criminology academic research is being used by policymakers to make informed decisions.

Students will write a scholarly paper that is a minimum of 10 pages in length (10 pages excluding the title page, abstract, and reference page). The paper is required to be in the most current edition of APA format.

References may be found in the APUS library or search engines such as Google Scholar. The paper must include at least five, peer-reviewed sources. Keep in mind that 5 is the minimum. A good quality research paper usually contains in excess of 10. Sources should be less than 10 years old and if using statistical data, it should be less than 5 years old. Do not forget to use in text citations to credit your sources.

Note that references used for your research need to be peer-reviewed/scholarly journals. These journals typically have the following characteristics:

1. articles are reviewed by a panel of experts before they are accepted for publication;
2. articles are written by a scholar or specialist in the field;
3. articles report on original research or experimentation;
4. are often published by professional associations;
5. utilize terminology associated with the discipline.

Use of newspapers, news magazines, and similar periodicals must be kept to a minimum, and will be acceptable only as sources for supplementary information. If you are not sure what is considered a peer reviewed source, view the announcement page for assistance.

References like “Wikipedia,” “Psychology Today,” and “Court TV” are not primary sources, are not peer reviewed (reviewed for empirical integrity, accuracy, and authenticity), and are not appropriate references for scholarly writing (with the possible exception of use for anecdotal background information).

The paper should be of high quality, free of spelling and grammatical errors, and the student’s original work. Limit Direct quotes.

Papers are automatically submitted through Turnitin.com and an originality score generated upon submission.