Introduction and Literature Review (DNA)

APA Style

Topic:  DNA evidence within criminal justice system

Write a 1,550-word Introduction and Literature Review that includes:

1. Introduction should be between 2–3 pages long and include the following:
– An introductory paragraph identifying the topic;
– The problem statement – revised as necessary to be geared towards criminal justice aspect and not psychology aspect
– The key concepts associated with your research (for example, if studying whether transferring youths to adult court is effective, the primary concepts that you would need to define to study the problem would be “youths,” “transfer to adult court,” and what is meant by “effective”);
– A discussion of the theoretical considerations or assumptions relevant to the issue (e.g., social learning theory claims XYZ about peer relationships and delinquency);
– The research hypothesis or hypotheses that the proposed study will test;
– The general approach to the research (e.g., survey research, field research, secondary data analysis, program evaluation, etc.); and,
– The overall goal of the research (e.g., improving juvenile justice programs, saving money, reducing crime, etc.).

2. Literature Review should be between 3–4 pages long and include a summary of at least five prior research studies on the issue you are proposing to study. The literature review should:
– Discuss the specific results or findings from each study reviewed;
– Address each study individually, as well as in comparison to the other studies reviewed;
– Point out trends you see in the literature;
– Synthesize your review into a summary of what is known and what is not known from the research that has been conducted on your topic;
– Identify any areas of controversy in the literature; and
– Formulate questions that remain to be studied in future research. Review the Discussion and Conclusion sections of most scholarly articles – the authors will identify way to improve and/or expand research on the particular issue. Using this information is a good way to develop unique research ideas.

Cite sources consistent with APA guidelines within the body of your paper as well as at the end of your literature review.