CM1S015 - Perspectives In Criminology: Developmental Criminology 05 Jul 2023 - 31 Aug 2028 | Version 2

Associated Module Information

Module Code: CM1S015
Module Title: Perspectives In Criminology: Developmental Criminology
Faculty: Faculty of Life Sciences and Education
Faculty Group: Policing and Criminology
Faculty Sub Group: Post Compulsory Education
Module Leader: Helen Martin, Zoe Cross, Daniel Welch, Tawnia McIntyre, Katrina Whale
Module Team:
First Intended Intake: SEP 2022 Final Year of Intake:
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 20 Credit Level: 4
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 0
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes:
HECOS Code Weighting:

Document Version Information

Version 2
Valid From 05 Jul 2023
Valid To 31 Aug 2028

Module Aims

1. To introduce students to a range of developmental, biological and psycho-social theories used to explain criminality.
2. To introduce students to serious and sexual crimes and how they might be linked to different types of trauma.
3. To consider the role of risk and protective factors in criminality.
4. To consider evidence-based interventions intended to achieve a reduction in reoffending.

Content Summary

This module will provide students with the opportunity to become active Criminologists as they consider why people commit crime (with a focus on the more serious and sexual crimes), from the developmental, biological and psycho-social perspectives. This module will also challenge students to consider how explanations for criminality have evolved through time. In doing so, students will develop an understanding of the role played by risk and protective factors in criminality; as well as exploring the various evidence-based interventions, used by formal criminal justice agencies (such as the police, Youth Offending Teams and Probation), in a bid to reduce reoffending. Overall, this module will demonstrate the importance and necessity of developmental, biological and psycho-social theory in the criminological and criminal justice practice.

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Lecture 12
Practical classes and workshops 36
External visits 16
Independent Study 80
Directed Study 20
Problem / challenge based learning 36
Total Hours Selected 200

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Discuss a range of developmental, biological and psycho-social theories of crime, which could be used to explain serious and sexual crimes.
LO2 Discuss a variety of evidence-based interventions intended to achieve a reduction in reoffending, particularly among serious and sexual offenders.

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Asynchronous Assessment Report 1 Students are required to produce a typed report based on the case of a convicted serious and/or sexual offender, which is documented in existing academic literature. Students will choose one case from a selection. 0 1500 50 No 40
Synchronous Online Assessment Classroom Test - Time Constrained (Online) 1 An online test in the form of a Blackboard Multiple Choice Test (MCQ), based on the module content covered in the first 6 weeks of the module. 30 N/A 50 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2
Report 1
Classroom Test - Time Constrained (Online) 1

Reading List

Dunnage, J. (2018). The work of Cesare Lombroso and its reception: Further contexts and perspectives. Crime, Histoire & Sociétés/Crime, History & Societies, 22(2), 5–8.

Kloppenburg, S., & van der Ploeg, I. (2018). Securing identities: Biometric technologies and the Enactment of human bodily differences. Science as Culture, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/09505431.2018.1519534

Ling, S., Umbach, R., & Raine, A. (2019). Biological explanations of criminal behavior. Psychology, crime & law : PC & L, 25(6), 626–640. https://doi.org/10.1080/1068316X.2019.1572753

Lloyd, S., & Müller, R. (2018). Situating the biosocial: Empirical engagements with environmental epigenetics from the lab to the clinic. BioSocieties, 13(4), 675–680. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41292-017-0094-8

Machado H., Granja R. (2020) Biological Explanations of Criminal Behaviour. In: Forensic Genetics in the Governance of Crime. Palgrave Pivot, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2429-5_3