Research Resources
Background Sources
Articles in Scholarly Encyclopedias
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Right to Bear Arms (Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court of the United States)Short article describing the Second Amendment and the debate in the courts.
Reference Books & Ebooks
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Gun Control in the United States: A Reference Handbook by
Call Number: EBL EbookISBN: 9781851097654Publication Date: 2006There are as many guns in the United States as there are adults. This book, presents the issue with both sides of the debate on all the issues and, thus, the tools to make an informed decision. It breaks the debate into topics like history, effectiveness, legislation and court cases, individuals and organizations, and reliable further resources. -
Encyclopedia of Activism and Social Justice by
Call Number: GVRL EbookISBN: 9781412918121Publication Date: 2007This encyclopedia is designed to give understanding to the topics, concepts and ideas which have motivated and shaped the fields of activism, civil engagement and social justice as well as offering short biographies of all the major thinkers and leaders who have influenced, and continue to influence, the study of activism. With anti-globalization rallies and acts of civil disobedience increasing in the western world, activism and social justice are topics of general public debate in the media. This encyclopedia looks to put into context the history of 20th and 21st century political and social activism and further the debate on social justice. -
Gun Policy in the United States and Canada by
Call Number: EBL EbookISBN: 9781441130525Publication Date: 2012The shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007 was one of the worst mass murders in the U.S., but it did not lead to any new federal gun control policy. In contrast, following a similar event in Montreal in 1989, Canada created new comprehensive gun policy.Such different outcomes are the focus of this survey, which sets out to explore the gun policymaking process in the U.S. and Canada in the aftermath of major events. It explores the many factors that lead to the drastically different reactions of the federal governments in each state if the aftermath of a mass shooting or assassination. To do so, it examines such elements as institutional arrangements, interest groups pressures (NRA, e.g.), and the party in power, studying the impact of such key events as the assassinations of J.F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Georgina Leimonis and shootings that occurred at Columbine, Stockton, and Vernon.A unique comparative study, Gun Policy in the United States and Canada will be an essential resource to anyone researching gun policy issues and comparative policymaking. -
Guns, Gun Control, and Elections: The Politics and Policy of Firearms by
Call Number: HV7436 .W55 2007ISBN: 9780742553484Publication Date: 2006Gun-related violence remains an intractable problem despite a decline in the past decade. Some believe the solution lies in stricter gun control laws while others think these measures would be ineffective or counter-productive. Guns, Gun Control, and Elections examines current gun control policy and explains how it was adopted by discussing the roles and interactions of elected officials, interest groups, political parties, and the public. Original research on media coverage and public opinion as well as a chapter on state policy (Virginia) make the book both informative and accessible. The book focuses on the utility of gun policy, and its discussion of policy impact is grounded in real-world politics. Wilson also highlights the importance of gun control in the Presidential elections of 2000 and 2004 as well as in some U.S. Senate and statewide campaigns. -
Guns, Violence, and Criminal Behavior: The Offender's Perspective by
Call Number: HV7436 .P65 2009ISBN: 9781588268433Publication Date: 2012How are guns used and viewed by criminals? Where do criminals obtain guns? And how do laws make firearms more or less accessible? Confronting these contentious questions, Guns, Violence, and Criminal Behavior offers a comprehensive exploration of the social processes surrounding illegal firearm use and criminal behavior. The authors draw on in-depth interviews with felons convicted of gun-related crimes and previous quantitative studies to offer a fresh look at the key issues of gun violence. Highlighting the overlooked symbolic influence of guns in criminal situations, their findings underscore the power of social and cultural forces in affecting gun use. -
Out of Range: Why the Constitution Can't End the Battle over Guns by
Call Number: EBL EbookISBN: 9780195304244Publication Date: 2007Few constitutional disputes maintain as powerful a grip on the public mind as the battle over the Second Amendment. In Out of Range, one of the nation's leading legal scholars takes a calm, objective look at this bitter debate. Tushnet breaks down the different positions on the Second Amendment, showing that it is a mistake to stereotype them. Along the way, he examines various experiments in public policy, from both sides, and finds little clear evidence for the practical effectiveness of any approach to gun safety and prosecution. Of course, he notes, most advocates of the right to keep and bear arms agree that it should be subject to reasonable regulation. Ultimately, Tushnet argues, our view of the Second Amendment reflects our sense of ourselves as a people. This compact, incisive examination offers an honest and thoughtful guide to both sides of the argument, pointing the way to solutions that could calm, if not settle, this bitter dispute.
Research Organizations
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Gun Rights vs. Gun Control (OpenSecrets.org)OpenSecrets.org, a resource for federal campaign contributions, lobbying data and analysis, is powered by The Center for Responsive Politics, which is a research group that tracks money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy. This is their analysis of the politics behind the gun control debate.
U.S. Government Agencies
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Federal Bureau of Investigation: Uniform Crime Reporting ProgramThe Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program was conceived in 1929 by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to meet a need for reliable, uniform crime statistics for the nation. In 1930, the FBI was tasked with collecting, publishing, and archiving those statistics. Today, several annual statistical publications, such as Crime in the United States, are produced from data provided by nearly 17,000 law enforcement agencies across the United States.
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The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ExplosivesATF is a law enforcement agency in the United States Department of Justice that protects United States citizens from violent criminals, criminal organizations, the illegal use and trafficking of firearms, the illegal use and storage of explosives, acts of arson and bombings, acts of terrorism, and the illegal diversion of alcohol and tobacco products.
Gun Rights Advocacy Organizations
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National Rifle Association (NRA)The National Rifle Association seeks to educate the public about firearms, defend US citizens' second amendment rights, and lobbies for gun rights legislation.
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Gun Owners of AmericaGun Owners of America (GOA) is a non-profit lobbying organization formed in 1975 to preserve and defend the Second Amendment rights of gun owners.
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Second Amendment FoundationThe Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is dedicated to promoting the right of U.S. citizens to privately own and possess firearms. They carry on many educational and legal action programs designed to inform the public about the gun control debate.
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Armed Females of AmericaArmed Females of America is a woman's group that supports the repeal of all gun control legislation and serves as a resource for female gun owners.
Gun Control Advocacy Organizations
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Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun ViolenceThe Brady Campaign works to pass and enforce federal and state gun laws, regulations, and public policies through grassroots activism, electing public officials who support gun control legislation, and increasing public awareness of gun violence.
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Coalition to Stop Gun ViolenceThe Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) seeks to secure freedom from gun violence through research, strategic engagement and effective policy advocacy. CSGV is comprised of 47 national organizations working to reduce gun violence. Its coalition members include religious organizations, child welfare advocates, public health professionals, and social justice organizations.
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Everytown for Gun SafetyAn umbrella organization coordinating the activities of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and Mayors against Illegal Guns.
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Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in AmericaImportant grassroots activist organization formed by stay-at-home mom Shannon Watts following the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012.
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Mayors Against Illegal GunsMayors Against Illegal Guns is a coalition of over 1000 current and former mayors across the country who have joined together to prevent criminals from possessing guns illegally.
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Third WayThird Way is a think tank that seeks to advance public policy. Their agenda includes tighter gun safety laws.
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Gun Free KidsGunFreeKids.org (GFK) is an Internet-based 501 (c) 4 issue advocacy organization, which provides tools for people to take action on pending state and national legislation and assists voters nationwide in learning about and supporting state-based candidates who favor gun violence prevention policies.
Data Sources
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Pew Research CenterPew makes their datasets publicly available for secondary analysis. Data on various topics is available dating back to 1997. A selection of gun control documents is available at the Pew Center topics page for Gun Control.
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Gun Control (Gallup Historical Trends)Historical polling data for American opinions on gun control and gun rights.
Gun Violence
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Gun Violence ArchiveNon-partisan group that gathers data on all acts of gun violence in the United States (2013-present). Includes a wide range of reports as well as a powerful database that can be searched and filtered in many ways.
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Mass Shootings in the United States: 2009-2017 (Everytown for Gun Safety)This appendix to a major report from Everytown for Gun Safety lists all mass shootings from 2009-2016 with details concerning each shooting.
Follow the Money
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Gun Rights v. Gun Control (OpenSecrets.org: Center for Responsive Politics)Use this site to track the influence of business interests on the politics of gun control and gun rights.
Databases
- Daily Bulletin (The Trace)
The Trace is a non-profit new agency dedicated to reporting on the gun crisis in the U.S. It was formed as a news spinoff from the Everytown for Gun Safety advocacy group. The Daily Bulletin digests stories from other news media and the Trace also conducts extensive reporting.of its own. - National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS)
This freely accessible database is a comprehensive source for criminal justice publications, including library abstracts for 225,000+ journal articles, research reports, data sets, and government publications. Since 2014, journal articles are largely excluded, with the focus on materials produced, funded, and sponsored by the U.S. Dept. of Justice. Most entries include links to the full text of reports and data sets. Search for the full text of journal article and book titles in the Ship Discovery Service. - U.S. Government Documents Catalog
Covers U.S. government publications from the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. Contains 500,000+ publications since 1976, with full-text for most recent materials. Freely accessible database
Laws and Legislation
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Thomas (Library of Congress)Contains legislative information from the Library of Congress. Access the Congressional Record & track current federal activity.
Freely accessible government website -
Legal CollectionCovers law and legal journals.
Contains full text articles from 300+ scholarly law journals. -
WestlawWestlaw is a legal database that includes secondary and primary legal sources. It contains statutes, codes, arbitrations, and case law. Westlaw also includes the legal encyclopedias, journals, treatises, and law reviews. Also includes public and private business information and coverage of news and broadcast information sources.
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Federal Firearms Regulations Reference Guide 2005Produced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, this guide contains gun legislation from 1968 on, information on the gun industry, and general information about the laws.
Key Publications
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Sen. Dianne Feinstein's Assault Weapons Ban of 2013On January 24, 2013, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) introduced the Assault Weapons Ban of 2013, a bill to stop the sale, transfer, importation and manufacturing of military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition feeding devices. Click here for the full text of the bill and more information regarding gun control legislation.
In-Depth Journalism
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ProPublicaProPublica is a freely available website produced by a major online non-profit news organization dedicated to in-depth investigative reporting about current issues in the public interest. ProPublica features two kinds of reporting: Investigations, which include a series of in-depth articles about a topic (often between 15 and 30 articles - major topics range from dozens to 100+ articles). MuckReads are shorter reports featuring investigative journalism from other news agencies. Major areas of interest include, among others: healthcare and the health industry, fracking, censorship, money and politics, and financial and economic issues.
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Reveal: The Center for Investigative ReportingReveal is a freely available website and the online media platform for the Center for Investigative Journalism, a major online non-profit news organization, founded in 1977, and dedicated to in-depth investigative reporting about current issues in the public interest. They publish series of investigative reports on a topic (typically between 10 and 20). Major areas of coverage include: criminal justice, the environment, guns, health care, labor and employment, national security, religion, surveillance and privacy, and veterans.
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Center for Public IntegrityThe Center for Public Integrity is a freely available website produced by a major online non-profit news organization dedicated to in-depth investigative reporting about current issues in the public interest, with a special focus on accountability and fairness, especially in terms of the role and influence of money. Topics featured include politics and elections, national security business, the environment, juvenile justice and health.
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National Public Radio (NPR)NPR is one of the most important freely-available sources of investigative journalism. It includes excellent topical pages but these are not easily browseable on the website. Use the High Quality Web Source Finder search box to locate the topical pages for your issue.
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Journalist's ResourceThis very high quality web site, located at Harvard's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy and sponsored by leading academic journalism programs, guides journalists and other researchers to find scholarly sources related to many of the most important topics in the news. Whenever the source is not available in full-text, use the discovery layer or library A-Z journal list to get library access to the article or to order it on interlibrary loan.
Newspaper Topic Guides
A number of important national newspapers have topic or issue sections of their website that bring together all the paper's articles on particular topics. The leading example of this is "Times Topics" from the New York Times. Each topic guide/section has a search tool that lets you refine your search.
Unfortunately, these sections are often not easy to browse or locate on the newspaper websites. Use the "High Quality Web Source Finder" search box above to search for your topic. Then choose the Newspaper Topic Guides tab to look for these in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Chicago Tribune. If you should hit a pay wall when browsing these newspapers, simply search for articles from any of these three papers using the ProQuest Newstand library database.
Science News
Congressional Research Service Reports (CRS Reports)
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is the public policy research division of Congress. It issues detailed research reports on a very wide range of issues. CRS doesn't maintain its own website, but its reports are available through several organizations and libraries.
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Congressional Research Service Reports (University of North Texas)The University of North Texas maintains a freely available digital library collection of Congressional Research Service reports, with the goal "to provide integrated, searchable access to many of the full-text CRS reports that have been available at a variety of different web sites since 1990" -- website. Best search tool for finding CRS reports. Update holdings of specific reports through the Federation of American Scientists or through a web search on the name of a report.
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Congressional Research Service Reports Archive (Federation of American Scientists)As a public service, the Federation of American Scientists maintains this free archive of CRS reports.
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EveryCRSReport.comWebsite that attempts to make all CRS reports easily available to the public. The result of a bi-partisan movement to get Congress to pass a bill requiring open access.
Web Directories
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Public Policy Issues and Groups (Vanderbilt Univ.)This freely available website produced by the Vanderbilt University Libraries provides an alphabetical topical directory to important websites on some 50 current issues. These guide pages typically include sections for these kinds of web resources: Basic Sites, Government, International, News, Statistics, Interest Groups and Research Centers and Other Educational Sites.
| Note: This list is mostly comprised of information compiled on the website of Shippenburg University, and is provided here under the Fair Use Doctrine. |