Criminology - Lecture notes All PDF

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Did not miss one class with Justin Pickett. Very comprehensive notes, Aced the class studying from these notes alone....

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University at Albany, SUNY School of Criminal Justice RCRJ 203 Criminology Fall 2013 Lecture Center (LC) - Room 18 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 9:20 - 10:15am

Professor: Dr. Justin T. Pickett Office: 225B Draper Hall Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 11am to 4pm; Tuesday and Thursday, 9am to 12pm. Office Phone: 518-442-5224 E-mail: [email protected]

Course Description: The goal of this course is to familiarize students with the descriptive, empirical, and theoretical issues in the study of crime and delinquency. Through lectures and readings, students will be exposed to and encouraged to think critically about the major theoretical perspectives and practical concerns in the field. Topics to be covered include the definition and measurement of crime, types of crime, theories of crime causation and social policy issues involving crime prevention.

Course Objectives:  Define terms central to the measurement of crime, criminological theory, and victimology.  Summarize crime trends and describe how various factors are theorized to influence crime rates including the economy, the number of at-risk youth in the population, criminal justice policies, social indicators, and other factors.  Explain how characteristics including ecology, firearms, gender, social class and race are associated with crime and victimization rates and patterns.  Differentiate between the core causes of crime presented in each of the major theoretical perspectives (choice, trait, social structure, and social process).  Categorize individual theories into their respective branches and branches into their appropriate perspectives.  Evaluate the validity of explanations for crime based on personal examples and available data.

Required Text  Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Syllabus Change Policy: 1

The syllabus is designed to be a resource that students should use throughout the semester. While this syllabus lists assignments and test dates, students should use the course website and Blackboard as their primary source for detailed information regarding the course. This is important because the instructor may update or modify assignments and readings throughout the course. In the situation of change or modification, the instructor will post changes under the “Announcements” tab on Blackboard.

Academic Honor Policy The University at Albany’s Undergraduate Academic Regulations outline the University’s expectations for the integrity of students’ academic work, the procedures for resolving alleged violations of those expectations, and the rights and responsibilities of students and faculty members throughout the process. Students are responsible for reading the Undergraduate Academic Regulations and for living up to the standards of academic integrity listed therein. Please refer to the Undergraduate Bulletin regarding the University’s policies (and student consequences) about plagiarism, cheating and other forms of academic dishonesty. http://www.albany.edu/undergraduate_bulletin/regulations.html

Plagiarism or any other academic dishonesty of any kind will not be tolerated in this class. Perpetrators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the University’s regulations.

Reasonable Accommodation Policy: Reasonable accommodations will be provided for students with documented physical, sensory, systemic, cognitive, learning and psychiatric disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring accommodation in this class, please notify the Director of Disabled Student Services (Campus Center 137, 442-5490). That office will provide the course instructor with verification of your disability, and will recommend appropriate accommodations. Also, please inform me of religious observances and illness that may arise.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

Exams (300 points) There will be three exams given in this course. Each exam will be worth a maximum of 100 points. Exams may be a combination of multiple choice, matching, and short answer questions, or a single essay question. The exams will cover all material addressed in lectures and in the assigned readings, up to that point in time. However, you should be aware that the subjects we cover are generally cumulative in nature. As a result, areas covered early in the course are relevant throughout the entire course.

Policy for Missed Exams 2

Make-up exams will only be allowed in cases of serious illnesses or dire emergencies. In such cases, the student must provide official documentation (e.g., admittance papers from the hospital, notice of funeral). Please note that a make-up exam will usually consist of essay questions. Grading Scale Please note that I will not curve any grades in this course. The final grade will be based on the following scale: Grading Scale: A 300-279 A- 278-270 B+ 269-261 B 260-249 B- 248-240 C+ 239-231 C 230-219 C- 218-210 D+ 209-201 D 200-189 D- 188-180 F 179 and below Exam 1: Exam 2: Exam 3: Total Points:

100 points 100 points 100 points 300 points

TENTATIVE COURSE CALENDAR Readings in bold are mandatory, those in regular font are highly recommended. All readings, other than the Hagan (2011) text are provided on Blackboard in the course library.

Fall - 2012

Lecture/Readings

Monday

August 26

Course Overview and Survey

Wednesday

August 28

Introduction to Criminology



Friday  

Chapter 1 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. August 30

Introduction to Criminology – Cont.

Chapter 1 from: Becker, Howard S. 1963. Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance. New York, NY: The Free Press. Beccaria, Cesare. 2004. Of Crimes and Punishments. In Classics of Criminology (3rd edition), ed. Joseph E. Jacoby. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

3

Monday

September 2

No Class – Labor Day

Wednesday

September 4

No Class – Rosh Hashanah

Friday

September 6

Methods for Measuring Crime and Delinquency



Chapter 2 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Monday 

Methods for Measuring Crime and Delinquency – Cont.

Thornberry, Terence P., and Marvin D. Krohn. 2000. The self-report method for measuring delinquency and crime. In Criminal justice (Vol. 4): Measurement and Analysis of Crime and Justice, eds. David Duffee, R. Crutchfield, Stephen D. Mastrofski, Lorrain G. Mazerolle and David McDowall. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.

Wednesday 

September 9

September 11

Methods for Measuring Crime and Delinquency – Cont.

Grove, Walter R., Michael Hughes, and Michael Geerken. 1985. Are uniform crime reports a valid indicator of the index crime? An affirmative answer with minor qualifications. Criminology 23: 451-501.

Friday

September 13

No Class – Yom Kippur

Monday

September 16

Crime Trends and Correlates of Criminal Offending

 

Chapter 3 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Sampson, Robert J., Jeffery Morenoff, and Stephen Raudenbush. 2005. Social anatomy of racial and ethnic disparities in violence. American Journal of Public Health 95:224–32.

Wednesday  Friday 

September 18

Crime Trends and Correlates of Criminal Offending – Cont.

Rosenfeld, Richard. 2002. Crime decline in context. Contexts 1:25–34. September 20

Crime Trends and Correlates of Criminal Offending – Cont.

Baumer, Eric P. 2008. An empirical assessment of the contemporary crime trends puzzle: A modest step toward a more comprehensive research agenda. In Understanding Crime Trends: Workshop Report, Committee on Law and Justice, National Research Council of the National Academies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 4

Monday

September 23

Exam 1

Wednesday

September 25

Classical Criminology and Rational Choice Theory



Chapter 1 from: Paternoster, Raymond and Ronet Bachman. 2001. Explaining Criminals and Crime: Essays in Contemporary Criminological Theory. Los Angeles, CA: Roxbury Publishing Company.

Friday  

September 27

Chapter 5 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Nagin, Daniel S. 1998. Criminal deterrence research at the outset of the twenty-first century. Crime and Justice 23:1-42.

Monday 

Biological, Biosocial, and Psychological Theories – Cont.

Biological, Biosocial, and Psychological Theories – Cont.

Barnes, J. C., Kevin M. Beaver, and Brian B. Boutwell. 2011. Examining the genetic underpinnings to Moffitt’s developmental taxonomy: A behavioral genetic analysis. Criminology 49: 923-954. October 7

Sociological Theories

Chapter 7 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Wednesday 

October 2

October 4

Monday 

Biological, Biosocial, and Psychological Theories

Simmons, Ronald L., Man Kit Lei, Steven R. H. Beach, Gene H. Brody, Robert A. Philibert, and Frederick X. Gibbons. 2011. Social environment, genes, and aggression: Evidence supporting the differential susceptibility perspective. American Sociological Review 76:883-912.

Friday 

September 30

Chapter 6 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Wednesday 

Classical Criminology and Rational Choice Theory – Cont.

October 9

Sociological Theories – Cont.

Sampson, Robert J., Stephen W. Raudenbush, and Felton Earls. 1997. Neighborhoods and violent crime: A multilevel study of collective efficacy. Science 277:918–924.

5

Friday 

October 11

Sociological Theories – Cont.

Anderson, Elijah. 1994. “The Code of the Streets.” The Atlantic Monthly, 273:80-94.

Monday

October 14

No Class – Columbus Day

Wednesday

October 16

Sociological Theories – Cont.

 

Hay, Carter. 2001. Parenting, self-control, and delinquency: A test of self-control theory. Criminology 39: 707-736. Pratt, Travis C., and Cullen, Francis T. 2000. The empirical status of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime: A meta-analysis. Criminology 38: 931-964.

Friday

October 18

Catch up/Review Day

Monday

October 21

Exam 2

Wednesday

October 23

Critical Theories



Chapter 8 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Friday 

October 25

Chiricos, Ted, Kelle Barrick, William Bales, and Stephanie Bontrager. 2007. The labeling of convicted felons and its consequences for recidivism. Criminology 45:547581.

Monday 

Critical Theories – Cont.

October 28

Critical Theories – Cont.

Stults, Brian J., and Eric P. Baumer. 2007. Racial context and police force size: Evaluating the empirical validity of the minority threat perspective. American Journal of Sociology 113: 507-546.

Wednesday

October 30

Critical Theories – Cont.

Friday

November 1

Violent Crime



Chapter 9 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2013. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

6

Monday  



November 8



Violent Crime – Cont.

White-Collar Crime

Chapter 11 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2011. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Monday 

November 6

Griffiths, Elizabeth, Carolyn Yule, and Rosemary Gartner. 2011. Fighting over trivial things: Explaining the issue of contention in violent altercations. Criminology 49:61-94. Copes, Heith, Andy Hochstetler, and Craig J. Forsyth. 2013. Peaceful Warriors: Codes for Violence Among Adult Male Bar Fighters. Criminology 51:761-794.

Friday 

Violent Crime – Cont.

Jacobs, David, and Katherine Wood. 1999. Interracial conflict and interracial homicide: Do political and economic rivalries explain white killings of blacks or black killings of whites?” American Journal of Sociology 105:157-190. Xie, Min, Karen Heimer, Janet L. Lauritsen. 2011. Violence against women in U.S. metropolitan areas: Changes in women’s status and risk, 1980-2004. Criminology 50: 105143.

Wednesday 

November 4

November 11

White-Collar Crime – Cont.

Piquero, Nicole L., and Alex R. Piquero. 2006. Control balance and exploitative corporate crime. Criminology 44:397-430. Wang, Xia, and Kristy Holtfreter. 2012. The effects of corporation- and industrylevel strain an opportunity on corporate crime. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 49:151-185.

Wednesday

November 13

White-Collar Crime – Cont.

Friday

November 15

Political Crime and Terrorism



Chapter 12 from: Hagan, Frank E. 2011. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior (8th edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Monday 

November 18

Political Crime and Terrorism – Cont.

Dugan, Laura, and Erica Chenoweth. 2012. Moving beyond deterrence: Raising the Expected Utility of Abstaining from Terrorism in Israel. American Sociological Review 77:597-624.

7

Wednesday

November 20

No Class – American Society of Criminology Conference

Friday

November 22

No Class – American Society of Criminology Conference

Monday

November 25

Political Crime and Terrorism – Cont.

 

Lafree, Gary, Laura Dugan, and Raven Korte. 2009. The impact of British counterterrorist strategies on political violence in Northern Ireland: Comparing deterrence and backlash models. Criminology 47:501-530. Bloom, Mia. 2004. Palestinian Suicide Bombing: Public support, market share, and outbidding. Political Science Quarterly 119:61-88.

Wednesday

November 27

No Class – Thanksgiving Break

Friday

November 29

No Class – Thanksgiving Break

Monday

December 2

Special Topics - Public Opinion and Criminal Justice

 

Cullen, Francis T., Bonnie S. Fischer, and Brandon K. Applegate. 2000. Public opinion about punishment and corrections. Crime and Justice 27:1-79. Roberts, Julian. V. 1992. Public opinion, crime, and criminal justice. Crime and Justice 16: 99-180.

Wednesday  

December 4

Special Topics – Juvenile Justice and Delinquency

Shelden, Randall G. and Lynn T. Osborne. 1989. For their own good: Class interests and the child saving movement in Memphis, Tennessee, 1900-1917. Criminology 27: 747-767. Feld, Barry C. 2003. The politics of race and juvenile justice: The “Due Process Revolution” and the conservative reaction. Justice Quarterly 20: 765-800.

Friday

December 6

Catch Up/Review Day

Monday

December 9

Exam 3

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