Criminology and Criminal Psychology, MSc

University of Greenwich

The module aims to equip students with a criminological understanding of research methods and methodological skills, including the rationale for their use and application. The course addresses all aspects of the research process, from identifying the appropriate theory and methodological design, the undertaking of real world research to the analysis/evaluation of data. It includes both quantitative and qualitative methods, thereby encouraging analysis of both the theoretical and reflexive nature of enquiry, as well as an appreciation of the assumptions that underlie the theory/research relationship. The use and relevance of research will also be considered in relation to its use by governments and other agencies including both the private and voluntary sector as well as considering international research, thereby providing a comparative approach to research.

The purpose of this module is to introduce students to the main currents of thought in criminology and criminal psychology studies and to provide them with the opportunity to critically appraise these ideas directly from original writings, research and first-hand testimonies. The course both grounds understandings within conventional criminological traditions ? from Beccaria to Garland; from the classical school to cultural criminology ? and criminal psychology, but significant emphasis is placed throughout on contemporary conceptualisations, applications and critical responses from home and abroad.

The aim of this module is to facilitate students to develop a critical and advanced understanding of how psychological and other empirical research has contributed, and is still contributing to the development of police investigatory techniques, with a particular focus on techniques that might be more likely to lead to wrongful convictions and other miscarriages of justice.

The purpose of this module is to equip students with specific research skills fundamental to criminological understanding, interpretation and application of research data. The main sources of research used by modern criminologists derive from three main sources: official statistical records (compiled by the police and other criminal justice agencies); large scale surveys (often commissioned by government) and small scale surveys/studies (conducted by academics, pressure groups and local authorities). This module offers students the opportunity to engage with a subject of their own choosing from a range of international and comparative criminological contexts. Students will be encouraged to engage with the various criminological sources of research listed above. In addition, students will be expected to apply the criminological theory, knowledge, and research methods skills that they will have acquired on the taught element of the programme. The dissertation element is central to the entire ethos of the Masters programme, which aims to equip students with the necessary skills to develop self-learning strategies considered appropriate for this level. This 15,000 word dissertation allows you to undertake EITHER empirical OR literature-based research to produce a significant written piece that reflects the culmination of your focused criminological studies.

The overarching aim of this module will be to investigate the contribution of psychology to the understanding of the development and maintenance of criminal behaviour. This will be accomplished by examining the psychological theories of criminal behaviour, many of which are incorporated into contemporary criminological theories. This module will also critically analyse the psychological aspects of criminal behaviour and examine the extent to which this behaviour is reliably predictable. By the end of the module it should also be clear that psychology plays and essential role in understanding the prevention of, and desistance from, criminal behaviour.