Forensic Psychology
fully online in 2020

Dr. Travis Langley  McBrien Hall 301-F
langlet@hsu.edu

Required Textbook:
Criminal Behavior: A Psychosocial Approach by Bartol.
Table of Contents/Course Topics, 11th edition: https://is.gd/CRIMINAL

TEXTBOOK OVERVIEW:

A comprehensive psychological approach to criminal and antisocial behavior.

Building on a tradition of excellence, Criminal Behavior: A Psychological Approach is accurate, well-researched, contemporary, and comprehensive. It offers a detailed look at crime, what may lead to it, and how criminal behavior may be prevented — all from a psychological perspective.  With a focus on serious crimes, particularly those involving violence, this text offers an all-inclusive look at a very complex field through effective and engaging material that has been classroom-tested for more than thirty years, Including crucial updates relating to crime definitions and DSM-5 categories, as well as the most current statistics and recently proposed models and theories. Numerous topics — such as intimate partner violence, juvenile sex offending, terrorist recruitment, elderly abuse, and sexual burglary — now receive more extensive coverage than ever before.

EXAMS

Each 40-point test will consist of multiple choice items and essay questions — covering lecture notes, assigned readings, and online discussion.

Exams before the final altogether = 40% of your course grade.

UNIT 1                                    TEST: 9/10
Chapters 1-3.

UNIT 2                                    TEST: 10/6
Chapters 4-6.

UNIT 3                                    TEST: 11/5
Chapters 7-10.

UNIT 4                                    TEST: 12/2
Chapters 11-3, 15. Bonus: 14.

FINAL (30% of your course grade)
Cumulative plus chapter 16.  Monday, 12/7, 3:00-5:00 p.m.

There will be NO makeup tests. There’s no such thing as a perfectly fair makeup test. Take each test when it’s scheduled. If funeral, jury duty, or medical event would keep you from using Internet at the time when a test is scheduled, contact your professor about that as early as you can.

PROJECT (30% of your course grade)

You will create a presentation applying concepts from forensic psychology to either your own life or world events related to crime during your lifetime.

GRADING SCALE

Test questions range in difficulty to get an accurate idea of exactly how much you know and understand about the course material. The scale on the 40+ point tests is simply this:

Your professor reserves the right to subtract any number of points from the grade of someone who disrupts the course or to assign a course grade of F to someone caught cheating.

Writing Across the Curriculum:

The last question on every test will be “What else did you learn from the current course material that was not otherwise covered by this test?” The normal maximum credit for this is 3 points, although someone who writes a lot of extra material might earn 3.5 or 4.0. Generally, you get half a point per distinct fact provided in your answer.

Show your understanding of material. Answer in your own words.  Copying someone else’s wording completely or too closely is plagiarism. The penalty for plagiarism is a grade of F for the course.

Do not simply write a name or term. Write complete sentences and tell what you learned about that name or term. For example: Writing the name Hugo Münsterberg or even a full sentence such as “We read about Hugo Münsterberg” would earn NO credit by itself. Writing that Münsterberg pioneered forensic psychology would get you half a point. Defining one of his major concepts would get you another half. Good examples could get another half. To earn full credit on the bonus question, you really need to talk about multiple topics. Write complete sentences.

INTERNET ASSIGNMENTS

To do your assignments, check the discussion forum on the MyHenderson page for this class several times each week. You will either do each assignment on that discussion forum or learn from the forum where to go to do each task. You will have several assignments every week. Each response you’re required to make counts as one point simply for following the instructions or minus one point (-1, negative credit) if you don’t do it. Because missing an assignment in an online class counts as missing class, anyone who fails to do three or more of the assignments may be dropped from the course without further notice. Think of this as a MyHenderson class. Even though Canvas will be used for tests and practice quizzes, otherwise this is not a Canvas class. The “total” or “average” in Canvas for the class can be misleading when it includes things that do not count as part of your grades and leaves out some things that do.

Do NOT email your work to your professor. Emailing it instead of posting it where it’s supposed to go counts as missing the assignment altogether, plus you’ll lose points from your overall grade.

DEADLINES

Assignments are due at the end of each week, indicated in the assignments’ subject headings. The week’s assignments are posted on the MyHenderson discussion forum by the end of each Wednesday, and they often appear earlier in the week. If you see no new assignments by Thursday, ask the professor in case of a MyHenderson error.

The deadline is 5 minutes until midnight at the end of each Saturday. For assignments that don’t lock you out at the end of Saturday, you get half credit for up to three assignments completed Sunday – only three, no more. No later work will be accepted. Meet the deadlines.

If you wait until that last day and something goes wrong that keeps you from doing the assignment, well, you should have done it earlier because you’ll have several days to complete each task. If your Internet is out all day, you are responsible for going somewhere with Internet access. If your wifi is out, you could use a phone to create a hotspot with access. The Internet is all around us, the ways to access it are many, and you have chosen to take an online class. Accessing the Internet and keeping track of your schedule are your responsibilities.

ATTENDANCE

Because doing Internet assignments counts as attendance, missing an assignment counts as missing class. People who miss three assignments could be dropped from the class without notice. This is your notice.

COMPUTER TIPS

To make sure your computer can interact with our system, you may need (1) the most current version of your Internet browser, (2) Windows updates, and (3) Java updates. Some systems we use don’t work well with Safari.

Call the HSU Computer Help Desk at 230-5678 or email helpdesk@hsu.edu if you have non-Canvas account difficulties. They will not be able to answer questions about specific assignments.

Contact George Finkle at finkleg@hsu.edu about Canvas login or access problems. George has nothing to do with the course content.

COMMUNICATION

The best way to contact your professor is via email at langlet@hsu.edu.

Every time you email your professor, say who you are and which course and assignment you’re talking about at the beginning of your message (not just in your subject line because that doesn’t immediately show in some apps).

Syllabus Part II: Expected Learning Outcomes, Computer Tips, Disability Services
(not covered by syllabus quiz)

Any information in this syllabus may be subject to change, correction, or other revision.