Wilfrid Laurier Fall 2013
CC 400 BR4: ADVANCED CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course focuses on developing your skills as a theorist, profiler, and practitioner of
criminology. In addition to broadening your repertoire of theoretical perspectives on
crime, this course examines how these theories can be applied for practical use in the
field. As you expand your knowledge of these theories—some foundational, some
controversial—you will learn to use criminology to interpret everything from decisions
made in notable trials and rules on offender sentencing, to delinquent behaviors and
attitudes depicted in the media. You will also draw on competing theories to analyze
historical and contemporary models of criminality, critically evaluating how they shape
both individual and institutional responses to crime, as well as the collective fear of crime.
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Michael Arntfield; marntfield@wlu.ca or www.michaelarntfield.com
WHEN & WHERE WE MEET: Mondays 7:00pm – 9:50pm in GRH 102B
OFFICE LOCATION & HOURS: Mondays 5:45-6:45pm in RCW 311
COURSE TEXTS:
 Bohm, Robert M. & Vogel, Brenda L. (2011) A Primer on Crime & Delinquency Theory,
3rd Ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth
 Cullen, Francis T. (2010) Criminological Theory: Past to Present, 4th Ed. New York:
Oxford
Evaluation:
Attendance & CLASS INVOLVEMENT – 15%
Regular attendance and impassioned, collegial, and active support of your peers in class
discussions and debates is essential to your success in this course and the vector of the
course itself. The topics, readings, and media explored in this course are often
controversial, anecdotal, and inspiring, and are sure to promote spirited dialogue. You
need to be here to get the full experience and voice your opinions, not to mention get your
participation marks. In short, this is a course where you really will get out of it what you
put in. I won’t be formally taking attendance but, rest assured, I will know if you are
attending and participating as required.
Discussion Leader ASSIGNMENT – 15%
As senior undergraduate students, many of whom are preparing to either move on into
graduate studies in criminology or pursue careers that intersect with some sphere of the
criminal justice system, you will be granted exceptional autonomy and creative control
over the in-class material as we follow a professional, or grad school, seminar format.
Each week, selected students (typically three) will be required to spend the first hour or
so presenting their reactions to the assigned readings and weekly topics. This will include
their leading the class discussion that will ultimately segue into my main lecture. The
discussion leaders will, on their assigned week, be expected to present their reflections on
that week’s topics by highlighting the key issues, doing so with the freedom to tailor
content according to their own interests. This includes using any secondary texts or
media beyond the assigned readings they feel are relevant. Discussion leaders are
expected to stimulate and arbitrate larger debates, while also leading an opening tutorial
session that will show evidence of their having a strong command of that week’s material.
That said, the presentation methods employed, format of the discussion, and work
invested—including the use of additional outside sources—are all at the discretion of the
presenters, with students being matched to specific weeks and topics during the first
lecture of the term.
DELINQUENCY OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT – 15% (DUE IN CLASS JAN. 28)
As a prelude to the main profiling assignment, you will have the opportunity to import
and impart your knowledge in this area of study outside the confines of the classroom for
use in the field. There will be a strict set of rules encompassing ethical, logical, and safety
regulations regarding this assignment, but the bottom line is that you will be required to
engage in the discreet, passive observation of anonymous individuals in public places as
specimens for scholarly study. More directions will follow, however you will be expected
to objectively and scientifically observe, record, and analyze—using one or more of the
prescribed theories covered in class—the causes and consequences of the delinquent
behaviors you observe committed by strangers in specific settings.
CRIMINAL PROFILING ASSIGNMENT – 30% (DUE IN CLASS MARCH 18)
This assignment requires that you apply the bulk of your last 3+ years of schooling and,
ideally, your long-standing interest in criminology for practical use in a profiling exercise.
In this assignment, you will actually approximate the methods used by crime analysis and
behavioral sciences units operated by agencies such as the RCMP, OPP and FBI, but in this
case you are required to assess the motives, underlying causes, and theoretical
explanations for the behaviours exhibited by a public figure. More specifically, this
assignment requires that you “profile” a celebrity or other person in the public eye (media
personality, sports legend, a well known artist or musician, etc.) and assess how your
research subject either fits or doesn’t fit within one or more of the theoretical frameworks
of this course. As you conduct a critical analysis of the statements and behaviours made
by a research specimen of your choosing, and in recording your observations and findings,
you will be required to not only determine whether the conduct in question is benign or
pathological, asocial or anti-social, but also assess the inherent limitations of such an
exercise. This includes recognizing all the variables that might have an impact on the
accuracy of your findings and that can inhibit you as a researcher and criminologist. A
detailed handout will be distributed with more specific instructions within the first few
weeks of class, but a key objective is to strike a balance between the theory and practice of
offender profiling as an imperfect science.
FINAL Exam – 25% (DATE TBD)
This course is dense on readings and essay-orientated work. That said, the final exam
will—by contrast—consist solely of multiple-choice format questions. This exam will assess
your knowledge of the fundamentals explored not only in this course, but in the larger
discipline of criminology itself. The questions will include my assessing your
understanding of the associated theories (and practices) covered over the various weeks.
The questions will also use a structured, multiple-choice format in order to evaluate your
grasp of these key concepts, and will come down to your being able to select the
appropriate answers to some challenging questions regarding not only criminological
theory, but how criminology fits within the larger study of crime across other academic
disciplines. In other words, consider this an informal exit exam from your study in this
field over the last few years, as well as a dress rehearsal for wherever you plan on ending
up with your (pending) degree in this field.
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE: *
WEEK 1 (September 9): INTRODUCTION, COURSE OVERVIEW & A CRITIQUE OF
CONTEMPORARY CRIMINOLOGY. No readings.
WEEK 2 (September 16): CULTURAL CRIMINOLOGY & THE CHICAGO SCHOOL
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part III & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 6
WEEK 3 (September 23): ECONOMIC MODELS OF CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part VIII & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 3
WEEK 4 (September 30): FEMINIST MODELS OF CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part IX & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 8
Delinquency Observation papers due in class
WEEK 5 (October 7): CHOICE VS. OPPORTUNITY-BASED MODELS
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part X & Part XI
WEEK 6 (October 14): THANKSGIVING – NO CLASSES
WEEK 7 (October 21): GENETIC & DEVELOPMENTAL MODELS OF CRIMINOLOGY
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part II & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 4
WEEK 8 (October 28): LABELING & SOCIAL LEARNING THEORIES
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part IV & Part XII & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 7
WEEK 9 (November 4): GENERAL THEORIES OF CRIME & CRIMININALITY
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part V & Part VI
WEEK 10 (November 11): NEOLIBERALISM & CRIME CONTROL
Readings: Cullen & Agnew – Part XV & & Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 2
WEEK 11 (November 18): GOTHIC CRIMINOLOGY & THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF ‘EVIL’
Readings: Bohm & Vogel – Ch. 9. Final papers due in class
WEEK 12 (November 25): EXAM REVIEW
* Topics by week and/or date subject to change depending on what happens in class. All due dates remain
firm in spite of any changes in the order of the presentations and/or weekly readings
Some Final Notes. Please Read Carefully:
• Students with special needs are advised to contact Laurier’s Accessible Learning Office for
information regarding its services and resources. They are also encouraged to review the Calendar
for information regarding all services available on campus.
• Wilfrid Laurier University uses software that can check for plagiarism. Students may be required
to submit their written work in electronic form and have it checked for plagiarism.
Email Policy
• Emails sent to me will in many cases be replied to from my Smartphone. Responses will therefore
be timely but concise as a matter of necessity. More detailed responses may be sent at a later time
or in some cases may require a meeting during my scheduled office hours, though these
appointments should be made sparingly. Note that as per university policy, I will only respond to
messages sent from your WLU account, and will only respond to messages sent to my WLU account.
If you customarily forward your university mail through another server or personal email client
(Outlook, Gmail, Hotmail, etc.) please amend your settings to reflect your assigned institutional
email address or it may be undeliverable and won’t be answered.
Late Penalty Policy
• I don’t like to penalize late assignments; however, you need to know that deadlines are not a
matter of negotiation. For these reasons, all assignments will be due on the date specified barring
some catastrophic event. Following any other policy would be an injustice to you as senior
undergraduate students in a competitive field. Assignments should be submitted in class, or
electronically if necessary or otherwise specified. Late assignments will be penalized at the rate
of 5% per day, including weekends, up to 35%. NO ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED
BEYOND THE 7 DAY MARK, NOR AFTER THE TERM ENDS, WHICHEVER COMES FIRST.
Social Media & Wireless Device Policy
• Note that while the responsible use of notebook computers, tablets, and PDA devices as learning
tools in this course is certainly encouraged, and while I understand that Smartphones are
increasingly integral to students’ social experience at university, it is expected that these
technologies will be used appropriately in the context of the classroom. Please respect your
professor (me) and peers (your friends and classmates) by refraining from SMS texting, BBMing,
IMing, or using social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, et al. other than during the
designated break times. Students who are found to be distracted by or routinely engaged in social
media, or who are observed using wireless devices for personal business during the lectures,
discussions, or screenings will be deemed to be mentally absent from the class and will have their
attendance and participation marks affected to the same degree as someone who has failed to attend
entirely. Please don’t make this an issue. Use discretion. Use common sense.