The Criminological department is relatively complex, entailing law enforcement agencies, legislation and the court system. The investigative department is especially critical in helping solve various crimes and bring about justice by providing evidence and a better understanding of crimes, the nature of the crimes, how they were committed and the magnitude of their impacts. The court system mediates between the defendants and the prosecutors to mediate between the crimes and the evidence provided. Specific modes of writing, journals and research are used in criminology. This report is about the different modes of writing that you will engage in in your profession, as well as the different journals and trade magazines that will be used together with the types of writing and research in which you will be engaged.
Criminology is a diverse field with several independent departments. Writing in Criminology depends on the department with which one is serving, which can be the investigation unit, the policing unit, the court unit or the corrections unit. Tools that help writing in Criminology include field notes, log sheets (as shown in Figure 1 below), and evidence.
Fig. 1: Sample Day Log Sheet in the police department https://bja.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh186/files/media/document/leitsc_law_enforcement_cad_systems.pdf
The specific types of writing likely to be encountered include narrations, descriptive writing, incident reports, research reports, research papers and proposals. Narration is a type of writing in which the order of events is structured logically and sequentially to keep records of a crime or help describe the crime better. This is often present during a crime scene investigation where theories are instituted as narrations of the event before evidence to prove the narration is unveiled (Meterko and Cooper 115). Figure 2 shows a sample narration by a police officer regarding the events of a homicide. Descriptive writing describes events and crime scenes in investigators’ cases. It is specific, providing dates, locations, names, times and senses. Report writing is also relatively common in criminology (Yu and Monas 35). Some organizations and departments write research reports that provide insights into cases or policy positions. Crime reports formulate the initial theoretical frameworks for investigations. Communications through memos, messages and emails are also standard, requiring mely and crystal communications between departments.
Fig. 2: Figure showing a sample narration by a police officer on an incident. https://uk.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-assets/101847_book_item_101847.pdf
APA style is the most recommended for different materials in criminology. APA writing style is recommended in most formal workforce fields, including nursing, business and psychology, with the same style used in criminology. According to the American Psychological Association (20), APA is preferred in criminology because of its simplicity and popularity, which makes it easier to coordinate between the various departments that the criminology field interacts with.
Writings in criminology are often directed towards the public, the court system supervisors, colleagues and other departments. A majority of writings in criminology often end up as public records. For instance, police reports in the U.S. are publicly accessible (Güss et al. 50). Some writings are often taken to court as evidence or incident reports. The same is often transmitted to the defendants, the judges, paralegals and attorneys. In Terry v. Ohio (1967) case, a report regarding the defendant’s arrest was made publicly available and used in court. Colleagues go through narrations to understand the cases and their progress. As such, formality is the predominant factor determining the nature of criminology writings.
The Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and the American Journal of Criminal Justice are the most critical journals used in criminology. The initial journal provides information on criminal law and how the criminal justice system applies it by providing published research materials on criminal law, its applications and impacts. The latter journal provides information on criminal justice trends, reforms and efforts to help manage and minimize the deleterious impacts of mishaps in the criminal justice system. Both qualitative and quantitative research are used in criminology. Qualitative research includes surveys, edge ethnography and interviews. Quantitative studies include crime report analysis, crime mapping, experimental criminology, and quantitative surveys.
In wrapping up, this report provides the different types of writing, the preferred format of writing, the audience and journals that are crucial in criminology. Significant types of writing include narrations, descriptive writing, incident reports, research reports, research papers and proposals. The APA style is preferred in formatting because of its popularity and ease of use. The public, other departments in criminology, colleagues and supervisors are the primary audiences for writings in criminology. The Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and the American Journal of Criminal Justice are vital in criminology. Writing in criminology encompasses complex and diverse elements depending on the department served, the required documentation and the audience of the piece of writing.
Works Cited
“Chapter 3 Writing in Criminal Justice Distribute .” Sage Journals, Sage Publications Ltd, 2020, uk.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-assets/101847_book_item_101847.pdf.
Güss, C. Dominik, et al. “Problems with police reports as data sources: A researchers’ perspective.” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 11, 2020, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.582428.
“Mastering APA style student workbook.” American Psychological Association, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1037/0000271-000.
Meterko, Vanessa, and Glinda Cooper. “Cognitive biases in criminal case evaluation: A review of the research.” Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, vol. 37, no. 1, 2021, pp. 101–122, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-020-09425-8.
Oyez. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968). Vol. 392, 10 June 1968, p. 11.
“Standard Functional Specifications for Law Enforcement Records …” Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2003, bja.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh186/files/media/document/leitsc_law_enforcement_rms_systems.pdf.
Yu, Han, and Natalie Monas. “Recreating the scene: An investigation of police report writing.” Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, vol. 50, no. 1, 2018, pp. 35–55, https://doi.org/10.1177/0047281618812441.
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