Psychology of Justice, Deviance and Social Crontrol
| Keywords |
| Classification |
Keyword |
| OFICIAL |
Psychology |
Instance: 2021/2022 - 1S 
Cycles of Study/Courses
Teaching language
Portuguese
Objectives
The main goal of this course is to provide the student with an approach to the field of Psychology of Justice and Deviance. It is intended that the student: (1) understands the field of Psychology of Justice; (2) knows the concept of deviation, its socio-cultural and historical relativization, as well as the social reaction to deviation and its consequences; (3) knows the main themes of these areas and its complexity, being able to interpret them taking into account the contributions of the different disciplinary areas; (4) knows the specificities and the contexts of intervention of the psychologist in this area.
Learning outcomes and competences
At the end of this course, students should be able:
- To know the Psychology of Justice and to understand the relationships between Psychology and the Justice System;
- To know the concept of deviation and to understand its socio-cultural and historical relativism;
- To understand the social reaction to deviance and its consequences;
- To know the major themes of these area, to understand their complexity and to be able to explain, understand or interpret them with the contributions of different subjects;
- To know the main explanations and theories of Psychology of Justice and Deviance and Social Reaction and to develop skills to apply them to specific contexts and behaviors;
- To know the specificities and contexts of intervention of the Psychologist in this area.
Working method
Presencial
Program
- Psychology of Justice, Forensic Psychology, Criminal Psychology or Psychology of testimony: Definitions, critical discussion and distinction of concepts;
- The Justice System and the role of the Psychologist;
- The notion of deviance: Definition, critical discussion and distinction from other concepts such as marginality, disturbance, disease,…;
- The biopsychosociology of 'deviant behavior': transdisciplinarity and explanatory complexity.
- The theories of deviance and the processes leading to deviance;
- The major subjects of deviance: crime, juvenile delinquency, drugs, sex work, violence (urban, domestic, ...), deviant sexualities,….
- Intervention contexts and the role of the deviantce psychologist.
Mandatory literature
Cândido da Agra;
Biopsicossociologia do comportamento desviante
Marshall B. Clinard;
Sociology of deviant behavior. ISBN: 978-0-495-09335-0
Alexandra Oliveira;
Andar na vida. ISBN: 978-972-40-4443-9
Alcaide, G., Fernandes, L., Pinto, M. & Calatayud, V; La investigación biomédica sobre abuso de sustancias a través de la base de datos Medline (2006-2010), 2015
Goode, E.; Deviant behavior, Routledge, 2014
Cutler, B. & Zapf, P. (Eds); APA handbook of forensic psychology., American Psychological Association, 2015
Hart, C. ; High price, Harper Collins, 2013
Oliveira, A.; Prostituição em Portugal. Uma atividade marginalizada num país que tolera mais do que persegue, 2017
Teaching methods and learning activities
- Lecture with some discussion with the support of slides and videos;
- Exercise classes with debate and discussion of practical cases and situations;
- Conferences by specialists of the topics addressed;
- Autonomous study;
- Reading and analysis of recommended papers.
Evaluation Type
Distributed evaluation without final exam
Assessment Components
| designation |
Weight (%) |
| Trabalho prático ou de projeto |
50,00 |
| Trabalho escrito |
50,00 |
| Total: |
100,00 |
Amount of time allocated to each course unit
| designation |
Time (hours) |
| Elaboração de projeto |
21,00 |
| Estudo autónomo |
10,00 |
| Frequência das aulas |
30,00 |
| Trabalho escrito |
20,00 |
| Total: |
81,00 |
Eligibility for exams
Presence in the classes is mandatory.
Calculation formula of final grade
The final grade, on a scale of 0 to 20, is obtained through the mean of the grades obtained in the following components:
- Group work: 50%
- Individual work: 50%
For successfully completing the course, students must achieve a final mark of 10.
Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)
Students with special status should contact the head of the course at the beginning of the semester.
Classification improvement
The attempt to improve the mark of the individual work is possible.