Research Methods in Political Science

This website, sponsored by UCLA's Institute of for Digital Research and Education (IDRE), is designed to students develop the skills needed to conduct common analyses in Stata and learn statistical analysis.

Provides access to Federal censuses since the first in 1790. The Census Bureau collects data about the economy and the people living in the United States from many different sources. Some data are collected from respondents directly (including businesses), through the censuses and surveys we conduct. We also collect additional data from other sources. Primary sources for additional data are federal, state, and local governments, as well as some commercial entities. These types of data are generally called “administrative data” because data collected and maintained by agencies are used to administer (or run) programs and provide services to the public.

In addition to providing an advanced, metadata-powered search experience, govinfo also includes a content management system and a standards-compliant preservation repository.These three components comprise GPO’s world-class system for the comprehensive management of electronic information: Public access - GPO combines modern search technology with extensive metadata creation to ensure the highest quality search experience. Users can easily access documents for free by searching or browsing the mobile-friendly website. Content management – GPO securely controls digital content throughout its lifecycle to ensure content integrity and authenticity. This includes the application of digital signatures to PDF files so users can verify documents have not been altered and are the official versions. Digital preservation – GPO’s ISO 16363 certified Trustworthy Digital Repository ensures content is preserved for future generations despite technical failure, aging of hardware, or technological change.

National Institute of Justice is the research, development, and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. Criminal and social justice students will find highly useful research reports from this agency for their own research papers.

The Department's mission is to shape and sustain a peaceful, prosperous, just, and democratic world and foster conditions for stability and progress for the benefit of the American people and people everywhere. You can find RSS feeds for the latest information on specific topics, business relations, country specific information, state by state information and business usa among others. This is a useful resource on a variety of topics for your research paper.

Association of Religious Data Archives (ARDA) collects and disseminates data on religion and religious groups nationally and worldwide.

Presented by the Library of Congress, Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and the public. It is presented by the Library of Congress (LOC) using data from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the Government Publishing Office, Congressional Budget Office, and the LOC's Congressional Research Service. Congress.gov supersedes the THOMAS system which was retired on July 5, 2016.

A great place to find social crime statistical data for research assignments, the BJS is the United States' primary source for criminal justice statistics and the primary statistical agency of the Department of Justice. It is one of the thirteen principal federal statistical agencies throughout the Executive Branch, agencies whose activities are predominantly focused on the collection, compilation, processing, or analysis of information for statistical purposes.

The mission of BJS is to collect, analyze, publish, and disseminate information on crime, criminal offenders, victims of crime, and the operation of justice systems at all levels of government. BJS also provides financial and technical support to state, local, and tribal governments to improve both their statistical capabilities and the quality and utility of their criminal history records.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is a component of the Office of Justice Programs in the U.S. Department of Justice.

The NIC is a center of learning that shapes and advances the effective correctional practice and public policy. Its research reports are a highly useful resource for criminal and social justice students. Find the latest research in the field of corrections.

Talking Points Memo (commonly known as TPM) is one of the premier digital native political news organizations in the United States – covering a broad range of politics, policy and national news. Founded in 2000, TPM is widely recognized as the pioneer of iterative journalism, which draws on readers’ knowledge to break stories. TPM was the first web-native news organization to win the George Polk award for Journalism in 2007 for coverage of the U.S. Attorney Firing Scandal. The editors of Time magazine say TPM is “the prototype of what a successful Web-based news organization is likely to be in the future.”

The Global Terrorism Database (GTD) is an open-source database including information on terrorist events around the world from 1970 to 2014 (with some to the present).

The Integrated Network for Societal Conflict Research (INSCR) was established to coordinate and integrate information resources produced and used by the Center for Systemic Peace. The following data resources were prepared by researchers associated with the Center for Systemic Peace and are generated and/or compiled using open source information. These resources are made available as a service to the research community. All CSP/INSCR data resources have been cross-checked with other data resources to ensure, as far as possible, that the information recorded is accurate, reliable, and comprehensive.

he National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism—better known as START—is a university-based research and education center comprised of an international network of scholars committed to the scientific study of the causes and human consequences of terrorism in the United States and around the world.

A Department of Homeland Security Emeritus Center of Excellence headquartered at the University of Maryland, START supports the research efforts of leading social scientists at more than 50 academic and research institutions, each of whom is conducting original investigations into fundamental questions about terrorism.

The UCR Program's primary objective is to generate reliable information for use in law enforcement administration, operation, and management; over the years, however, the data have become one of the country’s leading social indicators. The program has been the starting place for law enforcement executives, students of criminal justice, researchers, members of the media, and the public at large seeking information on crime in the nation. The program was conceived in 1929 by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to meet the need for reliable uniform crime statistics for the nation. In 1930, the FBI was tasked with collecting, publishing, and archiving those statistics.

The CCES is a 50,000+ person national stratified sample survey administered by YouGov. Half of the questionnaire consists of Common Content asked of all 50,000+ people, and half of the questionnaire consists of Team Content designed by each individual participating team and asked of a subset of 1,000 people. In addition, several teams may pool their resources to create Group Content. The survey consists of two waves in election years. In the pre-election wave, respondents answer two-thirds of the questionnaire. This segment of the survey asks about general political attitudes, various demographic factors, assessment of roll-call voting choices, political information, and vote intentions.

The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) is a federally funded resource that is a great one-stop-shop site for any topic releated to criminal and social justice, the law, and public safety. Check the A-Z Topics list on the left hand side of the page.

USA.gov is an Official Guide to Government Information and Services and provides a Google-like search to find the government documents on your research subject.