Introduction to Forensic Psychology

1. Early History of Forensic Psychology: demonology; witchcraft; phrenology; Lombrosian theory.

2. Twentieth Century Forensic Psychology: Hooton; Sheldon; Eysenck; modern neuroimaging studies of offenders.

3. Psycholegal Issues: eyewitness behaviour; police interviews; jury decision making.

4. Offender Profiling and Serial Crime: development and success of offender profiling; nature of serial crime and serial criminals.

5. Free Will and Responsibility for Crime: Do people really freely choose a life of crime? Consideration of psychological syndromes that seem to inhibit our free will.

6. Punishing Criminals: What is the purpose of punishment? Does it work? How can psychological studies tell inform the penal system?

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Provide an overview of the development of Forensic Psychology and the role of the scientific method in this;

• Explain some of the key issues in psychological research as they apply to crime;

• Demonstrate an understanding of how psychologists investigate psycho-legal issues;

• Critically discuss some of the most important issues in Forensic Psychology.

Essential:

There are no essential readings for the course but the recommended titles below may be of interest in following up themes or topics.

Recommended:

• Harrower, J., 2006. Applying Psychology to Crime. London: Hodder Arnold.

• Hibbert, C., 2003. The Roots of Evil: A Social History of Crime and Punishment. Stroud: Sutton Publishing Ltd.

• Hollin, C.R., 2006. Psychology and Crime. London: Routledge.

• Soothill, K., Peelo, M., & Taylor, C., 2002. Making Sense of Criminology. Cambridge: Polity Press.

• Wilson, J.Q. and Herrnstein, R.J., 1985. Crime and Human Nature. New York: Touchstone.