InfoGuides: HDFS 401-Family Law & Public Policy: Begin Your Research

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Begin your research

Welcome to the HDFS 401 - Family Law & Public Policy

Use this guide to locate sources to use for your course assignments for family law and public policy.

Find Articles - Key databases, journals for individual & family development or search for a specific journal related to family law and public policy
Find Books - books and ebooks related to Family Law & Public Policy
Find Legal Resources - Find legal databases, the legal codes for Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia as well as the beLegal Repository
Find Videos - Videos and streaming videos related to family law and public policy. Click the link to access the Teaching Channel
Find Websites - Professional organizations related to Human Development & Family Science and family law and public policy
Write & Cite - Examples of how to cite sources in APA format, information on Zotero and contacting the Writing Center for writing assistance
Get Help - Chat with a librarian, use How Do I? to get step by step instructions to help you use the Library's resources, or meet with the Education Librarian

HDFS 401 Assignment

Policy Research and Analysis Paper: 30 points

Select a family policy or social problem in need of policy attention.
Review the literature relevant to your topic to identify the historical, social, and political issues which might impact your policy topic (e.g., political movements, social trends, philosophies).
Provide a description of the policy and activities associated with it and consider the impact of the policy on families (e.g., consider the intended and unintended consequences of your chosen policy for family functioning and wellbeing).
Use the evaluation tools and family policy impact questions provided in class as a framework for conducting this analysis.
Your paper should be typed, double-spaced (using 12-point font) and up to a maximum of 15 pages in length (including title page, abstract, and references).
You are required to use a minimum of 10 professional sources (e.g., refereed journal articles, chapters from edited volumes)

See the syllabus for a complete description of this and other projects.