Social Research Methods

This guide will serve as a starting point to find statistics and data. If you need assistance, please contact a librarian for help.

NOT PUBLISHED

Subject:

Criminology

Sociology

Semester and Year:

Fall 2018

Course number:

SOC/CRM 500

Instructor:

Day, Jacob

Search the Library Catalog

Books

Guide to HUD User Data Sets

Mining Massive Data Sets for Security

Feedback

NOT PUBLISHED

Starting Points

ICPSR (Inter University Consortium for Political and Social Research)

ICPSR maintains and provides access to a vast archive of social science data for research and instruction, including a data archive of more than 500,000 files of research in the social sciences. It hosts 16 specialized collections of data in education, aging, criminology, criminal justice, social work, sociology, substance abuse, terrorism, and other fields.

[More details]

Data-Planet Statistical Datasets

Provides access to statistical information produced by the U.S. government, major international and intergovernmental organizations, professional and trade organizations, private companies, state government agencies, and universities. Create maps and reports from data. Compare and manipulate tens of millions of statistical data series available in the repository. Subjects include health, crime, population, finance, industry, marketing, and more.

[More details]

Statista

Statista aggregates statistical information on over 60,000 topics from more than 18,000 sources, including market research institutes, trade organizations, scientific journals, government databases, and many other private and public resources.

[More details]

Statistical Abstract of the United States

The Statistical Abstract is the best known and most popular single source of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. This database is designed to serve as a convenient, easy-to-use statistical reference source and as a guide to statistical publications and sources.

[More details]

iPOLL

The largest collection of poll data anywhere—1935 to present, all US polling firms, broad topical coverage of opinions and behavior on social issues, politics, pop culture, international affairs, and more. International and US datasets available for immediate download.

[More details]

CQ Voting and Elections Collection

A database of elections data, authoritative analyses, concise explanations, and historical materials to help researchers investigate and understand voting and elections in America from 1789-present.

[More details]

Other Databases and Data Sources

Bureau of the Census

serves "as the leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy."

[More details]

Explore Census Data

"Data.Census.gov is the platform to access data and digital content from the U.S. Census Bureau. The Census Bureau is the leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy."

[More details]

LINC

Log Into North Carolina (LINC) has over 900 data items from state and federal agencies for North Carolina. Historical data and projections, 1960s to 2030. State, county, municipality, township, tract, block group, and block coverage. Statistics in these areas: Population and Housing, Vital Statistics and Health, Social and Human Services, Law Enforcement, Courts, and Corrections, Environment, Recreation, and Resources, Energy and Utilities, Government, Employment and Income, Business and Industry, Agriculture, Transportation.

[More details]

SimplyAnalytics

Web-based mapping application that lets you create professional-quality maps and reports using demographic, business, and marketing data.

[More details]

World Development Indicators Online

World Development Indicators Online, published by the World Bank, is a comprehensive database of development information covering more than 575 indicators, 225 countries, and 18 regional and income groups. The extensive collection includes data on population, income, social, economic, financial, natural resources and environmental indicators from 1960 onwards.

[More details]

Historical Statistics of the United States

This five-volume reference work reflects thirty years of new data and scholarship. Topics ranging from migration and health to crime and the Confederate States of America are each placed in historical context by a recognized expert in the field.

[More details]

Pew Research Center

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan "fact tank" that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. It does not take positions on policy issues. Its work is carried out by these seven projects: The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, Project for Excellence in Journalism, Pew Internet & American Life Project, The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, Pew Hispanic Center, Pew Global Attitudes Project, Social & Demographic Trends.

[More details]

Government Resources

Data.gov

The official U.S. government website that provides increased public access to federal government datasets.

[More details]

Bureau of Justice Statistics

The United States' primary source for criminal justice statistics.

[More details]

National Criminal Justice Reference Service

NCJRS is a federally funded resource offering justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide.

[More details]

Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has provided essential economic information to support public and private decision-making since 1884.

[More details]

National Center for Education Statistics

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) collects, analyzes, and makes available data related to education in the U.S. and other nations.

[More details]

National Center for Health Statistics (CDC)

Provides US public health statistics including diseases, pregnancies, births, aging, and mortality. Public use data files are available for download.

[More details]

Bureau of the Census

serves "as the leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy."

[More details]

FBI - Uniform Crime Reports

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.

[More details]

FBI Records -- The Vault

Provides online access to selected FBI files. Particularly useful for researching groups or individuals who may have come under FBI scrutiny.

[More details]

North Carolina State Data Center (SDC)

The SDC is a consortium of agencies cooperating with the US Bureau of the Census to provide the public with data about the state and its component geographic areas.

[More details]

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Homepage of AHRQ, a federal agency which works to improve safety and quality of the American healthcare system. Resource for education and training, funding and grants, tools, and data and research collection.

[More details]

Department of Commerce

works with businesses, universities, communities, and the Nation’s workers to promote job creation, economic growth, sustainable development, and improved standards of living for Americans. Includes the International Trade Administration and Export.gov. Includes a section for North Carolina.

[More details]

North Carolina Department of Commerce

The state's lead agency for economic, community, and workforce development.

[More details]

Department of Housing and Urban Development

HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.

[More details]

HUD USER Data Sets

HUD USER provides researchers with access to the original electronic data sets generated by PD&R sponsored data collection efforts, including the American Housing Survey and HUD median family income limits, as well as microdata from research initiatives on topics such as housing discrimination, the HUD-insured multifamily housing stock, and the public housing population.

[More details]

Bureau of Transportation Statistics

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics was created to administer data collection, analysis, and reporting and to ensure the most cost-effective use of transportation-monitoring resources.

[More details]

Department of the Treasury

The Treasury Department is the executive agency responsible for promoting economic prosperity and ensuring the financial security of the United States.

[More details]

Social Security Administration

The mission of the Social Security Administration is to deliver social security services that meet the changing needs of the public.

[More details]

Websites

General Social Survey (GSS)

The General Social Survey (GSS) conducts basic scientific research on the structure and development of American society with a data-collection program designed to both monitor societal change within the United States and to compare the United States to other nations.

[More details]

Pew Research Center: The Databank

The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press offers free access to its data archive. Datasets are currently available dating back to January 1997. The Center's survey data are released six months after the reports are issued and are posted on the web as quickly as possible.

[More details]

Consortium of European Social Science Data Archives (CESSDA)

The CESSDA Catalogue enables users to locate datasets, as well as questions or variables within datasets, stored at CESSDA archives throughout Europe. Data collections include sociological surveys, election studies, longitudinal studies, opinion polls, and census data. Among the materials are international and European data such as the European Social Survey, the Eurobarometers, and the International Social Survey Programme.

[More details]

European Social Survey

The European Social Survey (ESS) is an academically driven social survey designed to chart and explain the interaction between Europe's changing institutions and the attitudes, beliefs, and behavior patterns of its diverse populations.

[More details]

EuroStat

Eurostat is the Statistical Office of the European Communities situated in Luxembourg. Its task is to provide the European Unio with statistics at European level that enable comparisons between countries and regions.

[More details]

SHARE - Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe

The Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) is a multidisciplinary and cross-national panel database of micro data on health, socioeconomic status and social and family networks of more than 40,000 individuals aged 50 or over.

[More details]

UK Data Archive

The UK Data Archive (UKDA) is a center of expertise in data acquisition, preservation, dissemination and promotion and is curator of the largest collection of digital data in the social sciences and humanities in the UK.

[More details]

UK National Statistics Publication Hub

The Publication Hub remains the first port of call for all those seeking the latest statistics from government departments in the UK. It is the central website for hosting all first releases of national statistics.

[More details]

Center for International Development

This page is a depository for data developed through research at the Center for International Development at Harvard University (CID). Often the data are associated with a research paper, which is also available for downloading.

[More details]

UNdata

The United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has launched an internet-based data service for the global user community. It brings UN statistical databases within easy reach of users through a single entry point from which users can now search and download a variety of statistical resources of the UN System.

[More details]