Course Syllabus

 

Course Information and Purpose 

‘Open prison’ – does that sound like a contradiction in terms? In Denmark, open prisons are a cornerstone of the prison system and ‘normalizing’ prison conditions are preferred in the Danish social context. In this course, you study crime, crime patterns, basic criminological theory, and criminal justice policy in Scandinavia. 

This course is for the student who is curious about the role of crime in society and the reasoning behind the liberal Scandinavian criminal justice system and / or the student who wants to better their analytical skills.

Learning Objectives

Objectives are that by the end of term, all students, whether with or without prerequisites in the social sciences:

• Understand and are able to explain the flaws of Scandinavian criminal justice systems as well as their advantages and put this in relation to US criminal justice
• Have enhanced their critical thinking towards sources and data
• Have enhanced their critical thinking towards own assumptions and have exercised how to balance theory and rational arguments in relation to emotion and opinion
• Understand and are able to take account of major methodological challenges and pitfalls when analyzing data on criminal justice
• Have worked with basic criminological or legal concepts: Legalization / criminalization / decriminalization, purposes of punishment, intent, recidivism
• Be able to discuss and reflect upon criminological research and criminal policy-making from an analytical (and critical) perspective.
• Have a basic concept of how a (criminal) policy may be developed and put into practice from decision-making over policy design to implementation as well as how these processes affects outcomes

Students with a background in the social sciences, especially criminology, should by the end of term have widened their knowledge with a Scandinavian perspective. As there are no prerequisites for the course, students with a social science background will get the chance to delve deeper into issues through readings. The teacher will aim to bring together students with a background in the social sciences so that they get to discuss these readings with other students. 

 

Faculty

Anne Okkels Birk,  Diploma in Criminology (University of Copenhagen 2007). MA (political science, University of Aarhus, 1997). Since 2007, independent consultant arranging Nordic prison officer conferences (2010, 2013, 2017, 2019) and conducting analytical work relevant to prisons and crime. Member of Danish criminal policy think-tank Forsete. Danish Prison and Probation Service 2001-2006, Ministry of Food 1997-2000. Twitter:  anne_okkels. With DIS from 2008.
Email: aob@dis.dk
Phone: +45 27 39 79 21

 

Readings

Academic sources:

Copes, H. (2014). Techniques of Neutralization. In Miller (ed.) The Encyclopedia of Theoretical Criminology, First Edition. Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 

Lippke, G. (2002). Towards a Theory on Prisoners' Rights. Ratio Juris, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 122-145.

Mathiesen, T. (2011). Scandinavian exceptionalism in penal matters - reality or wishful thinking? In: J. Dullum & T. Ugelvik, ed. (2011). Penal Exceptionalism? Nordic prison policy and practice. Routledge.

Mauer, M. (2017). Incarceration rates in an International Perspective. The Sentencing Project and the Oxford Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Link:  http://criminology.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264079.001.0001/acrefore-9780190264079-e-233 

Olesen, A., 2016. Debt as a Criminal Risk Factor in Denmark. Oñati Socio-legal Series [online], 6 (3), 676-706. Available from: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2783815

Piché, J. & K. Walby (2010). Problematizing Carceral Tours. British Journal of Criminology, vol. 50, pp. 570–581, doi:10.1093/bjc/azq014.

Reiter, K. (2014). Punitive Contrasts: United States versus Denmark — A Socio-Legal Comparison of Two Prison Systems. The Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Annual: Global Perspectives, Vol 6/1: 139-76.

Reiter, Sexton & Sumner (2017). Negotiating Imperfect Humanity in the Danish Penal System. In: Scharff Smith P., Ugelvik T. (eds) Scandinavian Penal History, Culture and Prison Practice. Palgrave Studies in Prisons and Penology. Palgrave Macmillan, London.

Sinnott-Armstrong & Levy (2011). Chapter 12. Insanity Defenses. In Deigh & Dolinko, eds. (2011). The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Criminal Law. Oxford University Press.
Online, link:: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/SSRN_ID1966313_code587055.pdf?abstractid=1966313&mirid=3

Sirén, R & J. Savolainen (2013). No Evidence of Specific Deterrence under Penal Moderation: Imprisonment and Recidivism in Finland, Journal of Scandinavian Studies in Criminology and Crime Prevention, 14:2, 80-97, DOI: 10.1080/14043858.2013.805048

Stridbeck, U. & P. A. Granhag (2010). Legal procedures in the Nordic countries and USA: a comparative overview, In Per Anders Granhag (ed.), Forensic Psychology in Context Nordic and international approaches. Willan Publishing. pp 14 – 34.

Winter, S. (2012). Implementation. In Peters & Pierre (2012). The SAGE Handbook of Public Administration. SAGE, pp. 255 – 263.

Aagaard, L. (2014). Chemical Castration of Danish Sex Offenders. Journal of  Bioethical Inquiry, vol. 11, pp. 117–118

 

Non-academic sources:

European Monitoring Centre from Drugs and Drug Addiction, EMCDDA website: https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/country-drug-reports/2019/denmark_en  

Reiter, K., L. Sexton & J. Sumner (2016, Feb 2). Denmark doesn't treat its prisoners like prisoners - and it's good for everyone. The Washington Post. Online, link:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/02/02/denmark-doesnt-treat-its-prisoners-like-prisoners-and-its-good-for-everyone/  

Rockwool Foundation Research Unit (2010). News from the Rockwool Foundation Research Unit, april 2010. Criminals pay a high price after completing sentences. Newsletter.
Online, link: http://www.rockwoolfonden.dk/app/uploads/2016/02/2010_April_eng_sik.pdf

Rockwool Foundation Research Unit (2012). News from the Rockwool Foundation Research Unit, January 2012. Crime rates halved among second-generation immigrants. Newsletter. Retrieved from
http://www.rockwoolfonden.dk/app/uploads/2016/02/Newsletter-January-2012.pdf

Rockwool Foundation Research Unit (2015). Homeless Romanians on the streets of Scandinavia come from conditions of extreme poverty. Newsletter. Retrieved from http://www.rockwoolfonden.dk/app/uploads/2016/02/Newsletter-English.pdf

Young, E. (Jan 19, 2017). How Iceland got teens to say no to drugs. The Atlantic. Link: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/01/teens-drugs-iceland/513668/

 

Field Studies

These years, the Danish Prison and Probation Service suffers from lack of staff as well as overcrowding. For that reason, it is unfortunately not possible to go on a visit to an actual Danish prison. Instead, we will have other real life experiences. 

 

Guest Lecturers

Guests in this course mostly practitioners that can provide students with 'meat' to put on the skeletons of theory.

 

Approach to teaching

The basis for my teaching is a profound devotion to criminology and to stirring others’ curiosity and intellectual growth. This goes both for students with and without prior experience with the subject area. It also goes both for students devoted to a field and students who are struggling to find out where their main interests are. For all students, I am dedicated to developing or honing skills in critical, analytical thinking. I focus especially on awareness of one’s own assumptions and prejudices as well as assessment of sources.

Lessons are often lecture-based, but broken up with questions for reflection or debate. A priority is to obtain a relaxed work climate in class where everybody feels okay with speaking up. This can only be achieved if all participants are respectful towards others’ questions, answers and opinions. If possible in relation to covid-rules, groups set by the instructor for a couple of lessons at a time will be a basis for many of the discussions; these groups are meant to both give students a safe home within the class and provide an opportunity to get to know more people in class. . 

A student may prefer to use some time for reflection before contributing. I still want to hear that student’s thoughts, questions and reflections – for that purpose, a discussion board is set up for contributions after class.

Friends or family visiting a student are welcome to sit in on this class, but they cannot join field studies.

 

Expectations of the students

Students are expected to:

• • Be willing to take an academic approach to difficult and often emotional subjects; also, be willing to consider arguments and policies that are far from the student's own viewpoints or emotions.
  • Complete preparatory work before class as described in the calendar. 
  • Participate actively during class and field studies with contributions and questions that are relevant to class material and which shows that the student is working or striving to work in an academic way. Students are expected to challenge own viewpoints and assumptions and to strive for nuance and complexity in their work and contributions. 
  • Consider how their contributions affect the overall work climate in class. If a student’s contributions do not have a constructive effect on the overall work and discussion climate in class, the student is expected to discuss this in a constructive way with the teacher.
  • Show respect for and attempt to understand other people’s viewpoints and experiences, whether other students or people encountered during guest lectures and field studies
  • Be punctual for class and field studies.
  • Write the instructor in case of illness or any other absence from class, movie screenings or field studies.

During the course, we will discuss issues and examples of crime and victimization (including sexual assault) in detail and these issues can come up in any lesson. In class, students may hear detailed descriptions of violent crime and some readings also include such descriptions. For planned use of examples and topics, students are welcome to flag that they would like a heads-up regarding content related to e.g. sexual assault, homicide, torture or institutional restraint. In this case, the teacher will provide the student with a description of what is going to happen in class so that the student is prepared. When it comes to readings with descriptions of violent crime, students can choose to read a version in which details are left out; in the following class, they will get to work in a group with people who made the same choice.   

We will watch a movie and other footage that may be experienced as rather disturbing. These are important to and integrated into the course and will not necessarily be announced in advance. For movies announced in advance, students will be allowed to watch the film in question on their own and send in a reflection.

Students, who feel unable to function with the above should consider taking another course. The same rules regarding attendance will be used for all lessons and field studies. 

 

Evaluation

Evaluation in this course consists of three different elements: written assignments, online preparation for class and active participation in classes and field studies. All three forms of evaluation aim at developing the student's analytical skills and skills in critical thinking; understanding of theory and skills at applying theory; and skills at distinguishing between own opinions or view and knowledge acquired academically. 

 

Grading 

Rubrics are available for all assignments and for participation. Rubrics will be updated at the beginning of the semester.

Assignment	Weight
Crime data assignment  Students first evaluate a crime data source, taking care to identify how data was collected and exercise presenting data in ways to support different opinions.	20%
Balanced assessment of Danish prisons On the basis of four sources - an academic text by Piché & Walby, a documentary, a movie and materials from class, students conduct a balanced and analytical assessment of advantages and disadvantages of Danish prisons.	20%
CJ policy assignment Students apply what they have learned about decision making processes and implementation in relation to a specific issue.	20%
Online preparation for classes For one third to half the lessons, students are to prepare through online quizzes and discussion boards. Grading follows a specific scale and is based on whether the student has conducted the online assignments and whether this happened before the deadline.	20%
Participation Students are to participate actively in classes and on field studies; participation must be relevant to class and show that the student endeavours to think in an academic way.	20%
Total	100%

To be eligible for a passing grade in this class you must complete all of the assigned work.

 

Late papers

Late papers are accepted, but there will be a deduction in the grade received.

Policy for students who arrive late to class:

Students who are repeatedly late for class will receive a lower participation grade.

Use of laptops or phones in class

Except during breaks, this class is computer-, tablet- and phone free. If there are special reasons for taking notes on a computer (for instance taking notes for a class mate with a disability), the teacher needs to be contacted and presented with a letter of accomodation or equivalent from the DIS Academic Support team.

Lessons, events and assignments

Assignments and lessons are described in the Canvas calendar, which is also where you find all links to readings. 

 

COVID-19 

We all have a collective responsibility to avoid the spread of COVID-19 at DIS. If you are sick or have symptoms of COVID-19 (Dry cough, high temperature, breathing difficulties, sore throat, headache, muscle pain), please stay at home and inform your faculty that you won’t be in class or at a field study – this will count as an excused absence. Keep up with the work and join activities via distance learning, if you are able to and if it is an option in your class (check with your faculty). If you are too sick to do work, reach out to the care team at care@dis.dk for medical support and coordinate with your faculty to make up missed class time. 

 

Academic Regulations  

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on: 

• Course Enrollment and Grading  
• Academic Expectations and Honor Code 

 

DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org