Cursos / 2º Ciclo / Faculty of Law :: Criminology

SEGURANÇA E POLÍTICAS CRIMINAIS - 2022/2023

2º curricular year
Semestralidade: 1st semester
ECTS: 7.5

Teachers

Leading Teacher: Prof. Doutor Cândido da Agra
Assistant Professor: Prof. Doutor Samuel Moreira

Class type and School hours

Teórica : 1 Horas
Orientação Tutorial : 1 Horas

Teaching Language

Portuguese

Main Aims/Objectives

- To understand (in)security concept;
- To grasp the correlates of (in)security;
- To know the main actors in the field of (in)security;
- To conceive the phenomenon of (in)security as a current and central problem of Criminology and criminal policies;
- To understand the organization, functioning and nature of political interventions in the face of (in)security in contemporary times.

Specific Aims/Objectives

- To understand the complexity and multidimensionality of (in)security;
- To grasp the relationships between (in)security and individual and environmental factors;
- To know and distinguish the different models of crime and insecurity prevention;
- To know different actors in the field of security and understand their role in the intervention and prevention of insecurity;
- To know the current trends in criminal policies and critically reflect on them.

Skills to be acquired

Students are expected to:
- Develop skills for analysis and reflection on the multidimensionality and complexity of (in)security;
- Know the decentralized, multilateralized, and commodified nature of security today;
- Understand the configurations and rationalities of current interventions and policies addressed to insecurity;
- Be able to carry out a literature review and a research proposal on a topic in this domain.

Teaching Procedures

Combination of the expository and interrogative methods, promoting the students´ involvement in the discussion and reflection on the exposed contents.
Monitoring and guidance of students in the elaboration of the written assignments in OT classes.

Programme

1. (In)security concept
1.1. Conceptual analysis: security vs. insecurity, objective insecurity vs. subjective insecurity
1.2. Multidimensionality of fear of crime: emotional, cognitive, and behavioural dimensions
1.3. Determinants of fear of crime: individual, contextual, and social variables

2. Security governance: key aspects for understanding current interventions concerning crime and insecurity phenomena

3. The main actors in crime and insecurity prevention and the relations between them: state and police, private security, and civil society

4. Physical and social environmental factors related to crime and insecurity
4.1. Environmental Criminology
4.2. Social Capital and Collective Efficacy

5. Crime and insecurity prevention models: situational, social and community prevention

6. Criminal policies
6.1. Configurations and rationalities of contemporary criminal and security policies
6.2. The relationship between criminological scientific research and criminal and security policies
6.3. The differential experience of different countries in a comparative perspective
6.4. The scientific evaluation of criminal and security policies: the “evidence-based policies and practices” movement, “evaluation research” and experimental criminology

Evaluation Type

Continuous evaluation comprises the completion of a written assignment on one of the topics of the curricular unit program and its presentation and oral discussion with the Professor.

Teaching Resources

Scientific books and articles.
Audiovisual resources.

Sustainability Objectives

Keywords

Security
Objective Insecurity and Subjective Insecurity
Criminal Policies
Security Governance
Environmental Criminology
Social Capital and Collective Efficacy
Crime and Insecurity Prevention Models

Main Bibliography

Complementary Bibliography