CCJ 4934: Biosocial Criminology
Spring 2016
Section: 1C51
Tuesday: 8-9 & Thursday 9 in TUR 2318
Instructor: Elise T. Costa
Office Hours: Tuesday 12:30-2:30 pm and Thursday 3-4pm & by appointment
Email: Ecosta22@ufl.edu
TA: Kaitlyn Kett
Email: kaitlynkett1@ufl.edu (set up appointments through email)
Note: All email correspondence must be through the email address listed above or through Canvas. You can expect a response within 24
hours on business days. When there is a deadline (i.e. a paper or test), emails must be sent at least 48 hours before or I may not have
enough time to respond. If I do not respond in 48 hours, please email me again.
Course Description:
Biosocial criminology examines the biological underpinnings of antisocial behavior and considers the interaction
between biological influences and environmental influences. While modern criminological texts minimally reference
biological influences, recent research has demonstrated that a suite of human behaviors is influenced by genetic
factors to some degree. This course will familiarize students with various areas within biosocial criminology
including but not limited to: behavioral genetics, molecular genetics, the brain, and pre- and perinatal environmental
factors. Additionally, this class will explore theoretical integration of biosocial criminology into criminology and
prevention options. Previous foundation in biology is not required; all basic information necessary for success will be
discussed in the class.
Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, you will:
 Explain the differences between biological and biosocial criminology and classical criminology.
 Understand of biological concepts that are relevant to criminology.
 Understand various areas of research and methods within biosocial criminology
 Develop critical thinking skills for evaluating research articles and be familiar with biosocial research and
findings.
 Understand theoretical integrations of biosocial variables into mainstream criminology.
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Textbooks:
Required:
1. Beaver, Kevin M. Biosocial Criminology: A Primer. Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, 2009. (ISBN-13: 9780757558764)
2. Beaver, K. M., Barnes, J. C., & Boutwell, B. B. (Eds.). (2014). The Nurture Versus Biosocial Debate in
Criminology. SAGE. (ISBN-13: 978-1452242255)
Course Requirements:
All dates for each category can be found on the Schedule on the last two pages.
Exams: (25% each, 75% of total grade/100 points each, 300 points total)
There will be three exams in this course. The exams will be on February 11th, March 17th, and April 14th. Exams
will have questions from lecture (including guests), class discussion, and readings. All class materials are fair game,
including handouts. If you walk in late on the day of the exam, you will only be permitted to take the exam if no one
else has handed it in and left the classroom. Makeup exams will be determined at my discretion. I expect
documentation for medical or family emergencies. I will not accept other excuses because exams are during class
time; therefore, you should not have any time discrepancies/conflicts. In the event that you have a conflict with a test
day, please notify me through email as soon as possible. Makeup exams will not be the same as the in-class exam
(they will likely be in essay format). If I am not contacted by the day/time of the exam with an acceptable excuse for
why you are missing the exam, you will NOT be allowed to take a make up exam. Documentation must be provided
prior to scheduling the make-up exam, and the make-up exam must be taken within 2 weeks of the exam date. Makeup exams will occur during my office hours, unless you have another class schedule during my office hours.
Article Summary/Evaluation: (20% of total grade, 80 points)
There will be four article discussion days in the semester: January 26th, February 9th, March 15th, April 5th. On
January 12th, there will be a sign up sheet in class. You must sign up for one of the three days. You will be assigned
a specific research article that you are expected to evaluate and come to class prepared to discuss that article on your
assigned day. You will have a rubric provided to you that explains my expectations for this paper. These five research
days will provide you the opportunity to learn about important biosocial research, while only having to do an in-depth
analysis one of them during the semester. Your paper will include an article summary, a critical analysis, and future
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directions. It is expected to be approximately 5 pages. Paper should be 1” margins, Times New Roman, 12-point font,
0 spacing before or after, no extra space after paragraphs. To receive full credit, you must be present on the day of
your scheduled presentation. You will only receive a maximum of half credit if you are not present. To receive full
credit, you must provide me with a hard copy of your typed article evaluations and be present to add to the discussion
in class. In addition to the hard copy submitted in class, you will be expected to submit your paper on Sakai to be run
through turnitin.com to check for plagiarism. The time stamp of the submission must be by 10:30am the day your
presentation is scheduled (due right before class starts). If it is not time stamped by that time, it will be marked late.
Rubric is available on Canvas.
In-class Assignments (5% of total grade, 20 points)
In regards to attendance, I do not have an explicit attendance policy. There will be in-class assignment that will
include papers summarizing readings, pop-quizzes, discussion board posts on Canvas, etc. These are not always
announced ahead of time so it functions as a check on attendance. I will drop the lowest assignment grade, so if you
have an unexcused absence on a day on of these is assignments is given in class, that will be the one that is dropped.
The dates are predetermined at the beginning of the semester, but as I mentioned, not provided to you ahead of time.
If you know you are going to miss class, please let me know ahead of time through email in the event it is a day that
an assignment is due; if I am not notified prior to class time with an excuse I approve as valid, you will be considered
absent and lose the points. You cannot make up these assignments. If you are present for all of the assignments, even
if you do not earn a perfect score on them, you will receive 5 points extra credit (in addition to the lowest score being
dropped).
Extra Credit Opportunities
1. See in-class assignments (above) for the first opportunity.
2. Attend F3S conference on Saturday March 19th. Check in with me at the event. Attend two presentations and
type a one page (single space or two page double). Paper should be 1” margins, Times New Roman, 12-point
font, 0 spacing before or after, no extra space after paragraphs. More information will be presented in class
closer to the conference date. Extra credit worth up to 10 points (5 points per panel attended).
3. More may occur during the semester but are not guaranteed.
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Policy Discussing Grades:
You must earn the number of points listed in the range & that is your grade. There are 15 points of extra credit
opportunities built into the course for you to boost your grade (and other opportunities may come up). If you disagree
with the grade you earned or think I made a mistake on any graded assignment/exam, come to my office hours and I
will be happy to discuss your grade with you. Also, you may come discuss how to improve your grade for future
assignments (I want everyone to succeed, so I strongly encourage coming to discuss this!). NOTE: There is a twoweek window to discuss any graded assignment/exam from when I hand it back.
Grading Scale:
Percentage
Grade
93-100%
90-92%
87-89%
83-86%
80-82%
77-79%
76-73%
70-72%
67-69%
63-66%
60-62%
<60%
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DE
Points Break
Down
371-400
359-370
347-358
331-346
319-330
307-318
291-306
279-290
267-278
251-266
239-250
238 or less
Policy on Late Assignments:
Assignments will be accepted late but will have a penalty. Per calendar day late, there will be a 10% deduction in
your grade.
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Classroom Conduct:
Please be respectful of your other classmates and the learning atmosphere as a whole. Refrain from having private
conversations, usage of your cell phone, reading material for other course, etcetera during class time because it will
affect the productivity of your classmates. If you choose not to come prepared, at least follow the above mention so
you are not a distraction to those who desire to learn; however, keep in mind that you will not receive your
participation points. It is important to arrive on time; if you know you will not be able to make it on time, please
email me ahead of time. I do not allow any electronics in my class of any form (no laptops, cell phones, mp3
players, tablets, or any other electronic device I did not mention). The only exception to this is pre-approved
accommodations from the Dean of Students.
UF Policies
University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities:
Students requesting accommodation for disabilities must first register with the Dean of Students Office
(http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). Documentation will be given to the students who register & it is your responsibility to
provide me with this documentation. Documentation must be submitted prior to any assignments. Accommodations
are not retroactive; therefore, if you do not turn documentation in prior to assignments, I will not go back and make
accommodations for past assignments, only future assignments.
Academic Honesty:
Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Please make sure you are
aware of the policies in the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/sccr/honorcode.php. Ignorance is not
an excuse in regards to academic honesty. Please make sure you educate yourself on university policies.
In order to maintain the integrity of your education and degree, cheating and/or plagiarism or any other academic
misconduct issues are taken very seriously. To remind yourselves of the importance of academic honesty, please
write the following statement on anything that is submitted in this class: “On my honor, I have neither given nor
received unauthorized aid in doing this assignment.” (Note: 5% will be docked if you do not include this)
However, if academic misconduct occurs, student will be taken to Judicial Affairs for them to handle. Cheating on an
exam will result in a 0 on the exam and it will be taken to honor court. Plagiarism will be handled on a case-by-case
basis depending on the percentage returned from turnitin.com. You will be called into my office or held after class to
discuss the case. You will either be asked to re-do the assignment, take a 0 on the assignment or taken to honor
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depending on the severity.
End of Semester Evaluations:
“Students are expected to provide feedback on the quality of instruction in this course based on 10 criteria. These
evaluations are conducted online at https://evaluations.ufl.edu. Evaluations are typically open during the last two or
three weeks of the semester, but students will be given specific times when they are open. Summary results of these
assessments are available to students at https://evaluations.ufl.edu/results.”
Final Remarks:
Please note that this syllabus is subject to change, including dates. I will give you warning if anything changes.
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Week
Day
Date
1
T
R
T
1/5
1/7
1/12
R
1/14
T
1/19
R
1/21
T
1/26
R
1/28
T
2/2
R
2/4
T
2/9
R
2/11
7
T
R
2/16
2/18
8
T
R
2/23
2/25
2
3
4
5
6
Topic(s)
Reading(s)
MODULE 1: INTRODUCTION
Syllabus Day
None
What is biosocial criminology?
1. Ch1 (Primer), 2. Gibson & Costa, 2014
Biology Intro for Social Science
1. Ch 2 pages 51-61 (Primer) 2.Wright &
Go over rubric for article evaluation
Boisvert (2009)
MODULE 2: BEHAVIORAL GENETICS
Behavioral Genetics Intro
Ch 2 (Primer)
Behavioral Genetics Approaches
Behavioral Genetics Research
BG Debate Part 1
Moffitt, 2011
1. Burt & Simons (2014) & 2. Barnes et al (2014)
The BG debate Part 2
See Canvas (4 short articles)
Article Discussion Day 1
Have all ABSTRACTS read
NO CLASS
None
MODULE 3: MOLECULAR GENETICS
Molecular Genetics Intro
Ch 2 pages 50, 62-69 (Primer)
Ch 3 (up to page 102) (Primer)
Molecular Genetics: GxE Interactions
Caspi et al (2002)
Article Discussion Day 2
TV episode analysis
Exam 1
MODULE 4: BRAIN
Brain
Brain Research
Wrap up Brain
Exam 1 review
Have all ABSTRACTS read
NONE
Ch 4 (Primer)
TBA
None
7
9
T
R
3/1
3/3
NO CLASS: SPRING BREAK
NO CLASS: SPRING BREAK
MODULE 5: BIOSOCIAL VARIABLES
Environmental Biosocial Variables (Per &
Perinatal)
Environmental Biosocial Variables (Infancy
and Childhood)
10
T
3/8
R
3/10
11
T
R
3/15
3/17
12
T
3/22
R
3/24
Theory: Strain
Moffitt, 1993
Barnes, Beaver & Boutwell, 2011
Ch 11-12 (N v. N)
13
T
R
3/29
3/31
Theory: Social Learning & Self Control
Theory: Cumulative Plasticity
1. Ch 7-8 (N v. N), 2. Wright & Beaver, 2005
Belsky & Pluess, 2009
14
T
R
4/5
4/7
Article Discussion Day 4
Exam 2 Review
Have all ABSTRACTS read
None
15
T
R
4/12
4/14
Policy Implications
Exam 3
1. Ch 8 (primer), 2. Ch 25-26 (N v. N)
None
Article Discussion Day 3
Exam 2
MODULE 6: THEORY & POLICY
Theory: Moffitt’s Dual Taxonomy
8
None
None
Ch 5 (Primer)
Ch 17 & 18 (N v. N)
Have all ABSTRACTS read
None