Women in the Criminal Justice System: Law, Policy and Institutions
| Module title | Women in the Criminal Justice System: Law, Policy and Institutions |
|---|---|
| Module code | POL3193 |
| Academic year | 2023/4 |
| Credits | 30 |
| Module staff | Dr Sarah Cooper (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 30 |
|---|
Module description
This module will introduce you to the position of women in the criminal justice system, both as victim and offender, and will explore the regulation of a range of issues from abortion and prostitution, to rape and female serial killers. The core theoretical element throughout will be the analysis of the respective influence of political and cultural organisations – such as the police, government, penal reform system, media and civil society – through various conceptual lenses including new-institutionalism. As a result, the strong emphasis of the course is the overlap between law and politics, and acknowledgment of the duality endemic to the UK’s criminal justice approach that starkly labels female conduct as either good or bad. Through specific empirical application, such as the question of probation in the case of Myra Hindley, the need for appropriate protection for prostitutes in regard to the ‘Bradford Murders’, and the call for public inquiry into the reporting process for rape, you will be able to consider the regulatory challenges this binary creates when women are seen to be conforming to more than one stereotype.
The module has no pre-requisites. Although principally concerning public policy, it comprises a multi-disciplinary approach to politics, law and criminology, and will appeal not only to students interested in women’s issues, but to those concerned with the interconnectedness between law and politics.
Module aims - intentions of the module
The course is divided into policy domains that ach comprise three parts; the first will concern how women are regulated in the 21st century, including the current statutory schemes, and the range of legal and policy instruments designed to shape and influence behaviour. The second section will question why these policy domains are shaped in this manner, and the influence of key institutions in this process will be critically examined. Finally, the consequences of such governance both for women directly engaged in such activities, and for the gender more generally, will be evaluated, and future lessons for policymakers suggested.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate understanding of the nature of how women are regulated across the three legal jurisdictions of the UK
- 2. Critically assess how law and policy is created and perpetuated across these policy domains
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Analyse a range of theoretical approaches to comparative policy analysis, including New Institutionalism and Europeanization
- 4. Analyse the role of key institutions and actors both at the macro level of policy formulation, and at the micro implementation stage
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 5. Communicate ideas effectively in a small group setting and through written work
- 6. Demonstrate advanced IT skills through extended presentations
Syllabus plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
Semester 1
- Introduction
- The organisation of political life and the role of supranational law
- Women in history: the female duality
- Abortion policy and reproductive freedom
- Evidence based policymaking and professionals
- Women’s issues and parliament
- The regulation of prostitution
- Sex for Sale in the EU
- Women and the Court System
- Women Who Kill
- Law Enforcement: Prisons and Parole
Semester 2
- Assessment guidance
- Innovative policymaking in women’s issues
- Pornography
- Interest groups and human rights legislation
- Women in the media
- Rape legislation
- Policy implementation and SLBs
- The gendered impact of political practices
- Girls and juvenile offending
- Women as decision makers: politicians, judges and officers
- Conclusion
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 44 | 256 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching activity | 44 | 22 x two-hour seminars |
| Guided independent study | 88 | Reading and preparation for seminars |
| Guided independent study | 34 | Research and writing of group presentation |
| Guided independent study | 50 | Research and writing of consultation paper |
| Guided independent study | 84 | Research and writing of essay |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consultation paper outline | 300 words | 1-5 | One-to-one oral feedback |
| Essay Outline | 300 words | 1-5 | One-to-one oral feedback |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 80 | 0 | 20 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group presentation | 20 | 15 mins per person | 1-6 | Written and verbal feedback |
| Consultation paper | 30 | 2,000 words | 1-5 | Written feedback |
| Essay | 50 | 2,500 words | 1-5 | Written feedback |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group presentation | One-to-one, 15 mins | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Consultation paper | 2,000 word consultation paper | 1-5 | August/September reassessment period |
| Essay | 2,500 word essay | 1-5 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Basic reading:
Ashworth, Andrew, and Jeremy Horder. 2013. Principles of criminal law. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Barberet. Rosemary. 2014. Women, crime and criminal justice: a global enquiry. Oxon: Routledge.
Bryson, Valerie. 2003. Feminist political theory: an introduction. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Canter, David, Maria Ioannou and Donna Youngs. 2009. Safer Sex in the City: The Experience and Management of Street Prostitution. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing Limited.
Chesney-Lind, M. and Pasko, L.J. 2003. The female offender: girls, women, and crime. Thousand Oaks, CS: Sage Publications.
Cook, Rebecca J., and Bernard M. Dickens. 2003. "Human rights dynamics of abortion law reform." Human Rights Quarterly 25(1): 1-59.
Cox, Pamela. 2003. Gender, justice and welfare: bad girls in Britain 1900-1950. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Childs, Sarah. 2008. "Women and British Party Politics." Descriptive, Substantive and Symbolic Representation Routledge: Taylor & Francis.
Gelsthorpe, L. and Morris, A. ed. 1990. Feminist Perspectives in Criminology. London: Open University Press.
Greer, Steven. 2006. The European Convention on Human Rights: achievements, problems and prospects. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Haussman, Melissa, and Birgit Sauer, eds. 2007. Gendering the state in the age of globalization: women's movements and state feminism in postindustrial democracies. Plymouth: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Hausmann, M. 2013. Reproductive Rights and the State: Getting the Birth Control , RU-486 and Morning After Pills and the Gardasil Vaccine to the Us Market. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.
Heidensohn, F. ed. 2006. Gender and justice: new concepts and approaches. Cullompton: Willan.
Krook, Mona Lena, and Fiona Mackay, eds. 2010. Gender, politics and institutions: Towards a feminist institutionalism. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Norris, Pippa, and Joni Lovenduski. 1995. Political recruitment: Gender, race and class in the British Parliament. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Peters, B. Guy. 2011. Institutional theory in political science: the new institutionalism. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.
Temkin, Jennifer, and Andrew Ashworth. 2004. "The Sexual Offences Act 2003:(1) Rape, sexual assaults and the problems of consent." Criminal Law Review 328-346.
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk
| Credit value | 30 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 15 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 6 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 26/05/2015 |
| Last revision date | 25/02/2022 |
