PS30158: Forensic psychology
[Page last updated: 02 August 2022]
| Academic Year: | 2022/23 |
| Owning Department/School: | Department of Psychology |
| Credits: | 6 [equivalent to 12 CATS credits] |
| Notional Study Hours: | 120 |
| Level: | Honours (FHEQ level 6) |
| Period: |
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| Assessment Summary: | ES 80%, OR 20% |
| Assessment Detail: |
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| Supplementary Assessment: |
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| Requisites: | Before taking this module you must take PS20107 |
| Learning Outcomes: | In completing this unit students would be expected to:
* Critically evaluate psychological theories relevant to forensic investigative processes * Gain a critical insight into the use of psychological theory and research in criminal investigations * Critically evaluate research methodologies examining the investigative processes used by the criminal justice system * Develop a critical approach to these key issues in Forensic Psychology. |
| Aims: | The intention of this unit is to:
* Allow students to identify and understand psychological approaches in the investigative processes used by the criminal justice system; * Show how psychological concepts are applied to forensic psychology; * Show how psychological methods are applied in a forensic setting. |
| Skills: | * Comprehensive and scholarly written communication (e.g. essays) * Concise, time-bound and effective written communication (e.g. briefings / exams) * Ability to select, summarise and synthesise written information from multiple sources * Ability to develop rigorous arguments through precise use of concepts and models * Ability to apply theory into practice * Ability to select and use appropriate ideas to produce a coherent response to a pre-set question * Ability to produce work to agreed specifications and deadlines * Ability to work independently, without close supervision of guidance. |
| Content: | The following topics will be covered during the course:
* Eyewitness testimony: Memory and the accuracy of witness evidence, suggestibility, interviewing witnesses, enhancing eyewitness memory, identification methods, eyewitness evidence in court. * Miscarriages of justice: Mistaken identifications, recovered and false memories and false confessions. * Vulnerable populations: children, mental health issues, intellectual disability, autism and older populations. * Offender interviewing: Interrogation and interview techniques and detecting deception * Theories of offending and treatment of offenders. |
| Programme availability: |
PS30158 is Optional on the following programmes:Department of Psychology
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Notes:
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