Mass Shootings: A Research Guide: Background
Introduction
On December 2, 2015, 14 people were killed and 21 injured by two shooters at the the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino. The two shooters were killed by police later that day.
A summary of the events as presented by local news media may be found here:
- San Bernardino Mass ShootingFrom the San Bernardino Sun newspaper. Includes profiles of the victims.
- LA Time articles re: San Bernardino shooting(CSUSB users only.) A search of the LA Times via ProQuest Newsstand.
This research guide is not intended to focus on the San Bernardino incident itself, but to assist CSUSB students and other researchers who seek to understand the phenomenon of mass shootings. Various aspects of the topic are highlighted, with pointers to sources of data and representative research articles.
Library Research Resources
Recommended Pfau Library databases:
- Criminal Justice Abstracts This link opens in a new window(CSUSB users only.) Scholarly literature relating to crime and criminal justice.
- Communication Source This link opens in a new window
Full-text research database for communication studies. It offers hundreds of top communication journals, magazines and other sources covering all related disciplines, including media studies, linguistics, speech pathology, rhetoric, and discourse.
- Global Newsstream This link opens in a new window(CSUSB users only.) National and international news publications. News media reports are in many cases the best sources of data about specific incidents.
- Law Reviews via WestlawNext This link opens in a new window(CSUSB users only.) Legal scholarship offers unique perspectives on the phenomenon of mass shootings.
Suggested keywords:
- mass shooting
- public shooting
- "public mass shooting"
- mass murder
- mass homicide
- mass killing
- multiple murder
- multiple homicide
- rampage shooting
- rampage killing
- active shooter
- mass casualty shooting incidents
The locations of specific incidents (e.g. Columbine, U.S. Navy Yard) maybe used as keywords, as well as the names of specific perpetrators.
Background Reading
- FBI: Active Shooter IncidentsThis page collates a variety of resources about active shooter incidents and response.
- Public Mass Shootings in the United States: Selected Implications for Federal Public Health and Safety Policy (PDF)Report by the Congressional Research Service, March 18, 2013.
Extreme Killing by Call Number: 3rd Floor HV6529 .F685 2015ISBN: 9781483350721Publication Date: 2015 (3rd ed.)Covers both serial murder and mass murder.
Mass Shootings: Media, Myths, and Realities by Call Number: EbookISBN: 1440836523Publication Date: 2016
