Forensic Psychology BSc (Hons) 2020/21 entry

Modules

• Developing as a Forensic Psychologist 2

  This module aims to enable you to build skills relevant to employability in a career as a Forensic Psychologist. Successful completion of the module will provide you with the practical skills (e.g. time management, CV writing, cover letters and interviewing techniques) needed to obtain work experience relevant to Forensic Psychology. You will be introduced to resources such as the career services to aid in identifying a Forensic Psychology related work placement. It builds upon the academic skills you have learned in various psychology and criminology related modules, and teaches you how best to showcase these skills to promote your career. This module is designed to enable you to market yourself creatively and effectively to consider a diverse range of employment opportunities, thereby creating your own career narrative and shaping the future direction of the profession. The module aims to develop your critical awareness of your own developmental needs and develop and enhance skills relating to employability in the field of forensic psychology.

• Psychological Perspectives on Crime 1

  This module takes a thematic approach to understanding core psychological perspectives on crime. You will gain knowledge of psychological theory and perspectives on crime, integrating and applying your knowledge of British Psychological Society (BPS) core areas. Themes explored will be contemporary, of global significance (e.g. addiction) and may change in any given year to remain relevant to current issues.

• Applied Research Methods 1

  This module aims to integrate knowledge gained in the psychological perspectives of crime 1 module with the application of quantitative research methods. You will have the opportunity to gain an understanding of how to conduct, report, and interpret a range of statistical tests using data associated with complex experimental and correlational designs.

• Psychological Perspectives on Crime 2

  This module continues the development of your understanding of core psychological perspectives on crime from the module psychological perspectives on crime 1. You will consider a variety of topics under the core domains and through theoretical exploration learn to integrate key psychological perspectives on crime, integrating and applying your knowledge of British Psychological Society (BPS) core areas. The consideration of how this knowledge could contribute to solving a community based issue will be explored. In addition you will be tasked with developing an output designed to solve an issue identified by an external community based organisation in association with psychology staff. You will be required to examine individual and group responses to the issues presented by drawing on knowledge and understanding of key topics within each of the core domains.

• Applied Research Methods 2

  This module aims to integrate knowledge gained in theory focused modules with the application of qualitative research methods. You will develop your understanding of how to design, conduct, and report qualitative research using a variety of data collection methods and analytical techniques. This module also aims to develop your ability to plan psychological research projects and guide you through the fundamental processes involved in developing and disseminating a research proposal (e.g. conceptual, methodological, and ethical considerations).

• Professional Experience

  This module is designed to provide you with the opportunity to gain work experience in an organisation relevant to your future career aspirations, which will be a valuable addition to your C.V. Work experience in an applied area or related domain may be in the form of paid employment or voluntary work. You will gain experience of researching and sourcing your own work experience. You will be able to draw upon the module Developing as a Forensic Psychologist 2 to help prepare you for sourcing, negotiating, and carrying out approved work experience. The work experience in turn will provide you with an important opportunity to reflect on your personal and professional development as part of developing as a forensic psychologist.

Add+vantage

The focus on preparing students for successful futures sets Coventry apart as a university.

The Add+vantage modules teach a range of work experience and extra-curricular activities that are taken each year, and broaden students knowledge and skills within a work focused environment. There is a very wide range of Add+vantage free-choice subject areas, and they are arranged in themes.

Modules

• Developing as a Forensic Psychologist 3

  During this module you will develop a range of essential personal and professional skills that are required to be a successful graduate employee in Forensic Psychology. You will have the opportunity to appraise and critique your own skills and develop a critical awareness of your developmental needs and develop and enhance skills. This module will support the development of a number of skills such as: researching the forensic psychological field; writing and speaking fluently; working in groups; reflecting upon your work; and presenting your work both orally and in writing. You will also be assigned tasks which will encourage you to solve problems and handle and analyse factual information.

• Independent Research Project

  This module is the focal point of your Psychological training: knowledge of research methods and theory should combine in order to pursue an in-depth supervised independent piece of empirical research. You will develop and demonstrate skills in report writing to meet the professional standards of psychology and develop a critical understanding of psychological research methodology.

• Project Ethics

  In this module you will design a suitable empirical research project that incorporates an appropriately expressed psychological research question. You will identify and propose suitable research methods to address the proposed research question and then undertake and complete an online Coventry University research ethics application. Unfortunately you are not permitted to conduct research in health or forensic settings, because of the NHS Research Governance and Her Majesty’s Prison Service (HMPS) rules.

• Optional modules

  To ensure that the content of our courses remain current for the benefit of our students, optional modules may be subject to change. 

  2 from the following:

  • Criminal Behaviour and its contexts: How does psychology contribute to how we view criminal behaviour? By studying this module you will examine the development of explanations of crime across different contexts in society, applying psychological theories in relation to three types of crimes which include violent, sexual and economic in family, workplace and sports contexts. By the end of the module you will be able to demonstrate the impact psychology has made in specific areas of the criminal process, and the prevention of crimes related to the contexts examined.
  • Special Educational Needs: By choosing this module you will study key theories and research that relate to the psychology of development, teaching and learning and the application of those theories to applied educational and judicial contexts. By examining issues of assessment, labelling, intervention and remediation you will have greater awareness of the special educational needs experienced by children and adults and how these difficulties impact on their experiences growing up.
  • Drug Use and Addiction: The subject of psychopharmacology focuses on the interrelationship between drugs, psychology and behaviour, drawing on several areas of psychology, in particular cognitive and biological approaches to develop models of, for example, addictive processes. These principles will be considered in relation to crime; the effects of addiction and the motivations to sustain substance abuse will explored from the point of view of the abuser and the victims affected. Throughout this module you will explore findings from psychophysics, psychopharmacology and molecular biology.

   

  1 from the following:

  • Mindfulness and Meditation: In this module you will be introduced to the western secular based mindfulness interventions and explore their essential theoretical, applied and empirical bases. The interventions you will study include Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy, Focusing Oriented Psychotherapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, and Compassion Focused Therapy.  
    
    Furthermore you will critically evaluate secularised mindfulness interventions by comparison with the practice of mindfulness in the context of its origins in Buddhist philosophy and practice. As part of the assessment for this module you will have the opportunity to engage in either a criminologically focused academic critique of interventions, or a critical self-analysis of your own experiential engagement with mindfulness and related practices throughout the module.
  • Psychology of Gender and Sexualities: Taking a critical and international perspective, in this module you will examine how gender and sexuality are understood across different historical and cultural contexts. You will draw upon many areas of psychology including social psychology (e.g. sexual prejudice), developmental psychology (sexual and gender identity development across the lifespan); and biopsychology (e.g. biology of sex and sexual orientation) to consider how the psychology of gender and sexualities intersects with applied areas such as educational, clinical, health, forensic and sports psychology.
  • Psychology of Teaching and Learning: This module examines the relationship between research in educational psychology and its practical application to teaching and learning. Throughout this module you will develop an understanding for how the insights and practice from educational psychology contribute to present-day teaching and learning. You will consider key theories and ideas about how people learn, the psychological processes involved in learning and teaching, and the strategies evolving from the application of these theories. An emphasis will be placed on the practical applications of educational psychology to teaching and learning in different contexts and you will also have the opportunity to evaluate and reflect on, your own teaching and learning experiences. 

Add+vantage

The focus on preparing students for successful futures sets Coventry apart as a university.

The Add+vantage modules teach a range of work experience and extra-curricular activities that are taken each year, and broaden students knowledge and skills within a work focused environment. There is a very wide range of Add+vantage free-choice subject areas, and they are arranged in themes.