Unit Outline

This unit will provide an introduction to psychology and law. The progression of lecture topics in this unit will roughly follow the course of an investigation and trial of a criminal case, covering issues such as eyewitness memory; false memories; police interviewing techniques; deception detection; and juror decisions. Throughout the unit, the focus will be on how psychological science can (a) help us understand various aspects of the legal system, and (b) help to improve important processes in policing and courtroom trials.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1.	Describe how psychological science promotes understanding of human behaviour and decision making in the legal system, and can contribute to the effective operation of key aspects of the legal system.
2.	Use your knowledge of relevant psychological theory and empirical research to evaluate the effectiveness of various practices and policies in the legal system
3.	Effectively communicate to academic and lay audiences by explaining how theory and evidence from psychology-law research has shaped understanding of behaviour and decision making in the legal system.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	PSY125 AND an additional 12.5 points at introductory level
Anti-requisite (mutual excl)	KHA212 or PSY313 OR KHA312

Alterations as a result of student feedback

No changes were required based on the feedback from 2023.

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Essay	Week 7	45 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 2:	Podcast Presentation	Week 9	15 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 3:	Final Exam	Exam Period	40 %	LO1, LO2, LO3

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Essay

Task Description:

Essay on a topic in psychology-law

Task Length:

1200 words maximum

Due Date:

Week 7

Weight:

45 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Development of argument	LO1, LO2, LO3
2	Coverage of literature	LO1, LO2, LO3
3	Style

Assessment Task 2: Podcast Presentation

Task Description:

Presentation on an area of psychology-law research

Task Length:

8 minutes

Due Date:

Week 9

Weight:

15 %

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Your grade will be determined in the following way:

Your final result is determined in accordance with the unit’s assessment information (see above). Marks for the individual components are totalled to contribute to the specified percentage. Marks are reviewed by the Unit Coordinator and School of Psychological Sciences Assessment Committee and may be adjusted to ensure fairness, consistency and appropriateness before the final marks and grades are assigned in accordance with University policy and the specified unit assessment. Grades and marks are also reviewed by the College of Health and Medicine Assessors’ Committee.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

There is no required textbook for this unit.