This is a study guide for IRM1501. Introduction to Research Methodology for Law and Criminal Justice provides you with basic skills and knowledge of research and how to conduct research on various sources of law and criminal justice by using diverse research database tools
Printed and published by the
University of South Africa
Muckleneuk, Pretoria
IRM1501/1/2019–2022
70654603
InDesign
CGM_Style
Downloaded by Nkosinathi MTHETHWA (nkosinathimthethwa07@gmail.com)
, lOMoARcPSD|5982778
CONTENTS
Page
PREFACE v
Learning unit 1: Introduction to Law Research 1
1.1 What is research? 1
1.2 Why is research important? 3
1.3 Scientific and non-scientific research 4
1.3.1 Scientific research 4
1.3.2 Non-scientific research 5
1.4 Basic research methods 6
Learning unit 2: Document-Based Research 8
2.1 Introduction 8
2.2 What is document-based research? 9
2.3 Why is document-based research important? 9
2.4 Components of document-based research 10
2.5 The research process 11
2.5.1 Planning research 11
2.5.2 Doing the research 15
2.5.3 Reporting on your research 18
2.6 Conclusion 19
Learning unit 3: Empirical Research 20
3.1 Introduction 20
3.2 What is empirical research? 21
3.3 Components of empirical research 22
3.3.1 Descriptive research 22
3.3.2 Exploratory research 22
3.3.3 Explanatory research 23
3.3.4 Evaluation research 23
3.4 Why is empirical research important? 24
3.5 Generic steps of empirical research 25
3.6 Conclusion 25
Learning unit 4: Accessing Information 27
4.1 Introduction 27
4.2 Accessing various research databases 28
4.3 Using the library 31
4.4 Referencing 33
4.4.1 What is referencing? 33
4.4.2 How to reference 33
4.5 Conclusion 34
Learning unit 5: Transformative Constitutionalism in Research 35
5.1 Introduction 35
5.2 What is transformative constitutionalism? 36
5.3 Basic principles of transformative constitutionalism 36
5.4 African research methodology 39
5.4.1 Ubuntu 39
IRM1501/1/2019–2022 (iii)
Downloaded by Nkosinathi MTHETHWA (nkosinathimthethwa07@gmail.com)
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