Psychology and Criminology BA(Hons)

Course structure

The degree covers all of the major branches of psychology: developmental, cognitive, social and biological. It also teaches the conceptual and historical issues of psychology along with the research methods used in its academic practice, while giving you the chance to explore modern subdisciplines such as cyberpsychology and ecopsychology.

The criminology side of the course examines different explanations for crime, its link to dangerous or irresponsible people and whether it is a consequence of deprived social circumstances. We also consider the role and performance of different agencies within the criminal justice system, including the police, courts and prison service.

You’ll learn through a mixture of lectures, seminars, workshops, group tutorials, individual tutorials, guided independent study and self-directed study. In year 2 there is an opportunity of a placement with a local organisation.

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up-to-date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you will be told about any new developments through Student View.

Year 1

Year 1 will introduce you to both disciplines and to research methods, which you will later apply yourself in your own research work.

Modules

• Introduction to Applied Psychology

  You will be introduced to the basic approaches and theories within psychology and consider issues of application in the field.

• Developmental Psychology

  The module will introduce you to key theories and topics in child development and lifespan development. You'll examine issues from infancy through middle-childhood to adulthood to explore how people develop through time. The module provides an historical, biological, social and cultural context for studying child development, and life-span development to help you frame the theoretical perspectives presented.

• Introduction to Psychological Research Methods

  This module will introduce you to the range of research methods used in psychology and will enable you to develop the skills necessary to collect and analyse quantitative data. It also provides an introduction to qualitative data collection and analysis.

• Contemporary Social Inequalities

  This module will provide you with the theoretical and conceptual tools to confront normative/normalising explanations of difference and inequality. You'll understand the ways that ‘differences’ and inequalities are formed and their consequences for everyday lived realities.

• Criminal Justice Matters

  This module will introduce you to the criminal justice system in England and Wales by exploring its main institutions and agencies: eg. police, courts, prison and probation. You'll explore some of the key debates and policies in relation to sentencing, victims and crime prevention. You will gain an understanding of the politics and controversies in criminal justice and develop your skills in identifying, analysing information and presenting coherent arguments.

• Theories of Crime

  On this module you will examine criminological theories from an historical perspective, and gain an understanding of the political, social and cultural context in which different theories were developed, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of their current application.

Year 2

In year 2, you will focus in on other core areas of psychology (for example, developmental psychology and social psychology) and learn about practical methods of crime control.

Modules

• Psychology, the Body and Individual Differences
• Psychology, Cognition and Social Worlds
• Punishment, Power and the State
• Critical Perspectives on Criminal Justice
• Psychological Research Methods

Options*

• Community Engagement: Theory into Practice
• Critical Analysis

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

Final year

Your final year at Brighton will give you significant room for choice as you decide which areas of criminology or psychology you would most like to pursue.

Modules

• Dissertation OR Psychology Dissertation
  (the psychology dissertation must be taken and passed to be eligible for graduate basis of chartered membership of the BPS)
• Violence and Society
• Forensic Psychology

Options*

• Cyberpsychology
• Global Issues: Crime, Power, Harm
• Criminology of Borders
• Critical Addiction Studies for Criminology OR Critical Addiction Studies
• Ecopsychology and Ecotherapy
• Mental Disorder and Anthropology
• Sexualities
• Psychology of Poverty

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

Facilities

Our multi-purpose Psychology Resource Laboratories have a range of high-tech facilities including:

• an applied cognition lab
• a creative methods lab for interactive experiments and focus groups
• experimental booths for one-to-one computer-based experiments
• mobile eye tracker, eye-tracking glasses and psychophysiology measuring kit.

You will also benefit from an open-access teaching space and a dedicated psychology technician who will support your experiments.

Click the image about to view a virtual tour of our Psychology Resources Laboratories.

Placements

In your second year the Community Engagement option module offers the opportunity to engage with a local not-for-profit organisation and gain valuable hands-on experience. It is a great opportunity to develop your vocational skills and gain practical work experience while contributing to the wider community.

You will spend around 50 hours volunteering with the organisation. This will be supported and underpinned by organisational training, tutor support and by in-class teaching covering theories of community engagement, organisational structure and culture, and reflective learning.

We will help you find a placement that is right for you from the range of local organisations who choose to work with our students.

The module features guest lectures delivered by external speakers drawn from the wider community. You will also produce a portfolio where you will reflect on your experiences and learning, with reference to practice examples and reflective theory.

Meet the team

Gemma Graham, course leader

Gemma completed her PhD at the University of Portsmouth in January 2016, before joining the University of Brighton in February the same year. Gemma’s research focuses on forensic and cognitive psychology, with a key interest in how people attend to CCTV footage, particularly when instructed to focus on specific features in the footage and witnessing different severity of crimes.

Gemma is trained in using a range of eye trackers. Eye-tracking technology is a growing field used to detect eye movements and analyse human processing of visual information in both the lab and in natural environments. The data is innovative and informative, allowing researchers a unique insight into how we attend to and understand the world around us. Gemma has integrated eye tracking technology into many research projects, including understanding how people look at; CCTV, drug charts, anatomy, online scams and lecture content. Gemma also supervises PhD students

Gemma is the module coordinate for Psychology of Security and Forensic Psychology. Her strengths lie in creating engaging and innovative teaching materials and she have a proven track record of delivering excellence in teaching. Gemma also delivers lectures and seminars in Cyberpsychology, Psychology, The Body and Individual Differences and supervises final year undergraduate dissertations.

Other key members of the team:

Dr Carl Walker
Orly Klein
Dr James Ravenhill
Dr Rebecca Grist
Dr Linda Tip
Dr Hannah Cassidy

International requirements and visas

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visas and immigration advice

Course fees

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2023–24.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

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