Public Policy: Home

SPIA Research Journal

Research Questions are concrete, are measurable, and answer a pressing research need.

Steps in Developing a Research Question

1) Define: define the broad area you want to study (for example, "private prison efficacy," "alternatives to use of police force on the mentally ill," "prison educational opportunities and recidivism")

2) Describe:  describe the problem in simple terms (for example, "X number of lethal force incidents in Y community involve mentally ill individuals undergoing a psychotic break.)

3) Specify:  specify what we (the larger research community) don't know about this topic (for example, "Does the creation of specially trained police units to deal with mental health problems decrease lethal force involving individuals experiencing a psychotic break?" or "Are strategies adopted by larger municipalities able to be scaled down for smaller populations with the same results?).  Too broad a question will hinder you in being able narrow down to a single answerable question, too narrow a question will hinder you in finding enough research to answer.

4) Create:  create your research question based on the information you've gathered.  Make sure your question is concrete, specific, measurable, and answerable.

You may go between these three steps multiple times before hitting on a good research question.  Don't be discouraged if you try a few dead ends before you have gathered enough information to write your research question.

Public Affairs Index

Database covering all aspects of global contemporary public policy issues ranging from public health, the environment, housing, human and civil rights, to international conflict and natural disasters.

Public Administration Abstracts

Find primarily scholarly articles on public policy, including the fields of administration and society, administrative structures and organization, and public and social services.

Political Science Complete

Find journal articles in political science and its complementary fields.

You can view lists of resources based on subject by clicking on "Browse by Subject" on the Libraries' homepage (libs.uga.edu)

Sage Research Methods 

Sage Research Methods supports research at all levels by providing material to guide users through every step of the research process.

REQUESTING PDF SCANS

You can request pdf scans of book chapters and print articles which already reside in our collection.  Fill out this form.

REQUESTING BOOK PURCHASES

You can request ebooks be purchased by the UGA Libraries for use for this research paper. Fill out this form.  If we can get an ebook, we normally can turn on access within a business week.

GIL EXPRESS

You can borrow book from all 32 University System of Georgia institutions through a service called GIL Express.  

First, search the GIL Catalog and find the book you want.  Make sure you choose University System of Georgia from the dropdown menu.  Click on the link to the catalog record of the book.

Second, if another university has the book, and it is not checked out, click on My Account at the top of the page to log in with your MyID and password.

After you log in, you will be able to click on the Request link.  The book should arrive at the Library within four business days.

INTERLIBRARY LOAN

If the book you need is not owned by UGA or another USG institution, you can then place an ILLiad request, and we will borrow it from outside of the public university system.  This takes longer, so be prepared to wait from two weeks to a month to get a book.

ILL will also get articles for you if we do not possess a print or electronic copy.  They normally can email you a pdf within one business day.