CRI10002: Fundamentals of Criminology
Assignment 3: Research Essay
The research essay marks your debut as a junior criminologist. You will select one particular type of criminal offence and choose whichever criminology theories you have studied that can best explain it.
The research essay requires you to conduct research about the chosen theories and offence using different academic sources, and to analyse this research to explain the cause(s) of your chosen criminal offence.
A research essay can seem like a daunting task. Break it down using the following steps.
homicide
assault
sexual assault
robbery
theft
arson
fraud
embezzlement
stalking
intimate partner violence
drug dealing
drug trafficking
terrorism
kidnapping
hacking
phishing
shoplifting
identity theft
money laundering
serial rape/homicide
Step 2: Research further and look back at your plan
Refer back to your plan and also the further research you have conducted about your offence type since you submitted Assignment 2B: Essay Plan. Look specifically at ideas/theories concerning why the crime occurs (causation) with regard to a particular criminology theory that we have covered during the semester (e.g. strain theory, biological determinism).
Step 3: Select your theories
Select the crime causation theories that you think best explains why and how this offence occurs. Make sure you have some good notes and planning on how the theories can best be used to explain why and how the offence occurs.
Step 4: Write the body and introduction of your essay
In your essay, you are required to explain the links between your chosen offence and the crime causation theories that you have selected. Outline the reasons why you think that this is the best explanatory model and provide examples—hypothetical or documented—to support your argument. Back up your argument with research. Use clear topic sentences to introduce each paragraph.
Many people find it easier to write the introduction after they have written the body of the essay. Remember, a good essay introduction includes a clear thesis statement.
Step 5: Policy response
In your conclusion, suggest one potential policy response that may help reduce or address the crime that you have researched. This suggestion should be broadly consistent with your theoretical analysis. For example, if you have chosen serial murder and explained it with reference to biological determinism, you may suggest brain imaging and compulsory treatment for young offenders suspected of being predisposed to violent crime.
