Faculty of Law
Forensic Psychopathology
Full course description
Forensic psychopathology plays an important role in criminal law. This course deals primarily with the criminal liability of offenders with psychopathology (e.g. the issue of diminished responsibility). Emphasis is put on a number of mental disorders and the meaning and relevance of these disorders in relation to criminal behavior and criminal liability. Special attention will be given to offenders with either psychotic disorders or personality disorders.
Course objectives
- Learning to identify different kinds of psychopathology (e.g., being able to distinguish psychotic disorders from personality disorders);
- Obtaining knowledge about the development, symptoms and treatment of these disorders;
- Creating the ability to assess how different types of mental disorders may predispose to criminal behavior (i.e., being able to evaluate how a particular constellation of symptoms can put somebody at risk of committing a certain type of crime);
- Discriminating real mental disorders from feigned psychopathology;
- Applying the obtained knowledge by critically analyzing the putative link between psychopathology and criminal behavior in true court cases.
Prerequisites
None
Recommended reading
A reader with articles on forensic psychopathology will be made available.
CRI4016
Period 5
7 Apr 2025
6 Jun 2025
ECTS credits:
6.0Instruction language:
EnglishCoordinator:
Teaching methods:
PBL, Lecture(s)Assessment methods:
Written exam, AssignmentKeywords:
Offenders, criminal responsibility, mental disorders.