Free Criminal Psychology Course
Criminal Psychology and Offender Profiling
Learn criminal psychology online through behavior theories, offender profiling, and interview basics. Enroll in this free criminal psychology course to understand forensic decisions.
About this course
This free online criminal psychology course explains how psychologists study criminal behavior while keeping the limits of profiling clear. You will learn criminal psychology basics, criminology differences, ethics, biological and psychological theories, social influences, personality disorders, psychopathy, developmental pathways, and how case evidence is interpreted without jumping to unsupported conclusions.
The course then moves into offender profiling training topics such as offender types, modus operandi, signature behavior, profile construction, investigative interviewing, the cognitive interview, the PEACE model, eyewitness memory, false-confession risks, competency, insanity assessment, risk tools, courtroom psychology, rehabilitation, and prevention. By the end, you can discuss criminal behavior and profiling with clearer judgment before choosing deeper supervised study.
Course outline
Understanding the Criminal Mind: An Introduction
In this module we cover what criminal psychology actually is, how it's different from forensic psychology and criminology, and the ethics that come with it.
Why People Commit Crimes: Competing Theories
In this module we dig into the major biological, psychological, and sociological theories behind criminal behavior, and practice applying them to real cases.
Inside the Offender's Personality Profile
In this module, you'll learn how personality disorders and psychopathy relate to criminal risk, and how to tell psychopathy apart from sociopathy.
From Childhood to Crime: Developmental Pathways
In this module, you'll learn how childhood experiences, family dynamics, and environment shape criminal pathways, and what protects against them.
Profiling the Offender: Patterns and Typologies
In this module, you'll learn organized versus disorganized offender types, modus operandi versus signature, and how to build a criminal profile step by step.
The Psychology of Investigation and Interrogation
In this module, you'll learn interviewing techniques like the cognitive interview and PEACE model, plus how eyewitness memory and false confessions work.
Psychology on Trial: Forensic Assessment in Court
In this module, you'll learn how competency and insanity are assessed, how risk tools predict reoffending, and how psychologists testify in court.
Beyond the Sentence: Rehabilitation and Prevention
In this module, you'll learn treatment approaches like CBT for offenders, the risk need responsivity model, and strategies for community based prevention.
Get access to the complete curriculum once you enroll in the course
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