CJS 1307 – Introduction to Crime and Criminology

Course Room and Time: Monday and Wednesday, 12:30-1:45 P.M. – SOM 1.102
Instructor: Krissi Miller
Office: GR 2.126
Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 2:00-3:00
Office Phone: (972) 883-2040
E-Mail: kmm015500@utdallas.edu

I reserve the right to make additions or subtractions to this syllabus. All information, dates, and
assignments included on this syllabus are subject to change.

Course Description: A survey of the nature, location, and impact of crime in America. Includes historical
foundations of crime, theoretical explanations of criminality and delinquency, the recording and
measurement of crime, descriptions of criminal careers, and an analysis of public policies concerning crime
control.

Textbook:

- Criminology: The Core (2nd Edition). Larry J. Siegel. ISBN#: 0534629377 Available at off-campus
books (581 West Campbell Road – Suite 101).
- Additional readings will be handed out in class throughout the semester

Expectations: I expect you to:

1) Attend class regularly and to be on time for class. It is ultimately your responsibility to know the material
presented in lectures and discussions, as that is what you will be tested over. If you must miss class,
please make arrangements to get the notes from someone else in class.

2) Be respectful to others in the class. People are entitled to their opinions and there is not always a “right”
and “wrong”. Be prepared to see things from a point of view that is different than your own. Anyone who is
disrespectful to anyone else will be asked to leave and will lose their attendance points for that day.

3) Participate in class. Not only should you actively listen to lectures and discussions, but please also ask
questions when you are unclear on something pre sented in class.

4) Read the assigned materials before each class. This will make it easier for you to follow and understand
the material when we go over it in class.

5) Be prepared and on time for each exam. Exams will be given in class on the days listed. Make-up tests
will only be given in the event of a medical emergency and will require some form of documentation prior to
the exam (such as a doctor’s note). If you are absent for an exam for any other reason, you will
receive a grade of 0 for that exam and it cannot be made up. Graded exams will not be returned to
students until all students have taken the exam. You must take the exam during the specified time for
the class. If you are late for an exam, this will result in you having less time to complete the exam.
I will likely use WebCT throughout the semester to send class e-mails and post grades. It can also be
useful for students, as it gives you a way to easily contact each other. In order to access WebCT, you will
need a login and a password. You will need to have a UTD NetID and password to access the course. If
you have not set up a UTD NetID account yet, please go to the UTD NetID page at http://netid.utdallas.edu
to initiate your account at the start of the semester. Your UTD NetID is your WebCT ID. It is to be used to
access all of your UTD WebCT courses plus other UTD computing systems.

Grading: Your final grade in the course will be based on your performance on three in-class examinations
and your class attendance over the semester. Each exam will count for 25% (for a total of 75%) and class
attendance will be 25%.

The exams will consist of some combination of multiple choice, matching, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, and/or
short answer questions. Each exam is worth 100 points. Exam questions will be taken from class lectures
and assigned readings. Any material covered in class may potentially be a test question.

Attendance will be taken each class period (except for on exam days and the first day of class). You can
earn up to 100 points toward your attendance grade. Excluding exam days and the first day of class, there
are 25 class sessions. Each time you attend class, you will receive 5 points toward your attendance grade.
You may miss 5 sessions without it affecting your attendance grade. For example, if you miss a maximum
of 5 classes, but attend 20 classes, your attendance grade would be 20 (classes) x 5 (pts) = 100. If you
miss 10 classes, your attendance grade will be 15 (classes) x 5 (pts) = 75.

Your final grade in the class will be based on the following scale:

98 – 100 = A+ 77 – 79 = C+
94 – 97 = A 70 - 72 = C-
90 – 93 = A- 67 – 69 = D+
87 – 89 = B+ 63 – 66 = D
83 - 86= B 60 – 62 = D-
80 - 82 = B- 0 – 59 = F

Academic Dishonesty:

Students who engage in academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including automatic
failure on an individual assignment, the possibility of failure in the course, and dismissal from the university.

“Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for
credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an
examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to
commit such acts.” Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Part One, Chapter VI, Section 3, Subsection
3.2, Subdivision 3.22.

Class Schedule: (In addition to the chapter assigned readings listed below, supplementary readings
will be given in class. You are responsible for all material assigned.)
Mon. 8/22 – Course Introduction

Wed. 8/24 – Read Chapter 1: Crime and Criminology What is crime? What is criminology?

Mon. 8/29 – Read Chapter 2: The Nature and Extent of Crime How is crime reported? What are some
crime trends?

Wed. 8/31 – What types of crime patterns exist? Who is the “chronic offender”?

**Friday – 9/2 – Census Day - Last day to drop without a “W” **

Mon. 9/5 – Labor Day – University Closed

Wed. 9/7 – Read Chapter 3: Victims and Victimization What is the role of the victim? What types of
problems do victims face after a crime? What is the nature of victimization? What are the theories of
victimization?

Mon. 9/12 - Read Chapter 4: Choice Theory: Because They Want To Rational choice theory. Why do
people commit crime? Crime prevention strategies.

Wed. 9/14 – General deterrence, specific deterrence, and incapacitation. Policy implications of rational
choice theory.

Mon. 9/19 – Read Chapter 5: Trait Theory: It’s in their Blood Early and contemporary trait theory.
Biological trait theories.

Wed. 9/21 - Psychological theories. Policy implications of trait theories.

Mon. 9/26 – Exam #1 (covers Chapters 1-5)

Wed. 9/28 – Read Chapter 6: Social Structure Theory: Because They’re Poor Econo mic structure and
crime. Social structure theories. Social disorganization theories.

Mon. 10/3 – Strain theories and cultural deviance theories. Policy implications of social structure theories.

Wed. 10/5 - Read Chapter 7: Social Process Theories: Socialized to Crime Socialization and crime and
social learning theories.

Mon. 10/10 – Social control theory, labeling theory, policy implications of social process theory.

Wed. 10/12 - Read Chapter 8: Social Conflict Theory: It’s a Class Thing Conflict theory, critical
criminology.

Mon. 10/17 – Emerging forms of conflict theory. Policy implications & restorative justice.

Wed. 10/19 Read Chapter 9: Developmental Theories: Things Change Latent trait theories, life course
perspective, and life course theories.
Mon. 10/24 – Exam #2 (covers Chapters 6-9)

Wed. 10/26 – Read Chapter 10: Violent Crime The causes of violence. Forcible rape, murder and
homicide.

Mon. 10/31 – Assault and battery, robbery, new forms of interpersonal violence, terrorism.

Wed. 11/2 - Read Chapter 11: Property Crimes History of theft, contemporary theft, and larceny/theft

Mon. 11/7 - Burglary and arson.

Wed. 11/9 - Read Chapter 12: Enterprise Crime: White-collar Crime, Cyber Crime and Organized
Crime White collar crime.

Mon. 11/14 - Cyber crime and organized crime.

Wed. 11/16 - Read Chapter 13: Public Order Crimes Law and morality, homosexuality, prostitution, and
pornography.

Mon. 11/21 - Substance abuse – drugs and alcohol.

Wed. 11/23 – Read Chapter 14: The Criminal Justice System Police/law enforcement, courts, and
corrections.

Mon. 11/28 -– Models of justice.

Wed. 11/30 – Exam #3 (covers Chapters 10-14)