Gender and Crime
Code: 100453Credits: 6
| Degree programme | Type | Course |
|---|---|---|
| Criminology | OP | 4 |
Contact lecturer
- Name :
- Encarnación Bodelon Gonzalez
- Email :
- encarna.bodelon@uab.cat
Group languages
You can consult this information at the end of the document.
Prerequisites
We recomend to have studied any module covering gender issues.
The course will take into account the Objectives of Sustainable Development
The classes of both theory and seminars will be in Spanish
Objectives
a) General learning objectives:
The objective of this module is to analyse the processes through which gender relationships are constructed within the scope of the criminal justice system. The objectives are manifold: firstly, to point out how criminology knowledge reproduces and generates structures of subordination towards women, through the study of traditional criminology schools of thought and of the most recent criminology and gender theories; secondly, to understand the gender exclusion mechanisms used by the criminal system, that increase their own particular selectivity and generate new exclusion (for instance, in the case of women’s prisons); thirdly, gender perspective addresses how the solution of some social problems affecting predominantly women are tackled.
b) Objectives concerning the development of skills:
With this module, we aim to provide students with a new critical perspective (i.e. gender perspective), to study the criminal system and its application.
c) Objectives centred on the learning of values:
This module will contribute to the learning of non-sexist values and respect towards gender diversity. All these will be use to delve into the development of the human rights culture.
Learning outcomes
- Working autonomously.
- Working in teams and networking.
- Ability to analyse and summarise.
- Drawing up an academic text.
- Verbally transmitting ideas to an audience.
- Using the scientific knowledge for the analysis and resolution of crime situations.
- Carrying out criminological intervention proposals based on an evaluation and an effective needs assessment.
- Applying criminological interventions focused on peace, integration and social prevention criteria.
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
Contents
1. Androcentrism in criminology and in the analysis of female crimes.
1.1. Sexism and criminal law.
1.2. Sexism and criminology
1.3. Stereotypes about female crimes.
2. Women: women in prison.
2.1 Historical perspective of women’s prisons.
2.2 Characteristics of women’s imprisonment.
3. Contemporary problems of women’s imprisonment.
3.1 Migrant/foreign imprisoned women.
3.2 Maternity and prison.
3.3 Reintegration of imprisoned women.
4. Sex work, prostitution and women’s trafficking.
4.1 Feminist debates about prostitution and sex work. Abolitionist and pro-rights proposals.
4.2 Legal regulation of prostitution. Prohibitionist, abolitionist and regulatory models.
4.3 Public policies about women’s trafficking and protection mechanisms.
5. Women’s control over their bodies: abortion as a crime.
5.1 Feminist recognition of abortion. Several viewpoints on the role of the State.
5.2 Possible legal systems: the system of indications. Bio-ethics debate.
5.3 The symbolic control of reproduction.
6. Sexual harassment and sexual violence against women.
6.1 Definition of sexual harassment and sexual violence.
6.2 Legal and social strategies of interventions in cases of sexual harassment.
6.3 Sexual violence in armed conflicts.
7. Prevention and Safety in terms of gender.
7.1 Sexism in the conceptualization of safety.
7.2 Safety guidelines and planning with gender perspective.
8. Specific processes for female criminalization.
8.1 Young women and crime.
8.2 Women and drugs.
8.3. Gender cyber violence
9. Women’s rights in criminal systems.
9.1.Alternatives to the penal system and restorative justice
9.2 Human rights with a gender perspective and the role of criminal justice.
Learning activities and methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seminar | 19.5 | 0.78 | 2, 3, 5, 9, 10 |
| working groups | 25 | 1 | 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 |
| Lectures | 19.5 | 0.78 | 6, 7, 8, 9 |
| Individual work | 41 | 1.64 | 1, 4, 7 |
The course will include the theoretical exposisions of the teacher and the debate around the readings by the students.
Each week the teacher will propose a reading and some questions for the debate. It would be necessary some previous work un groups to prepare the debate un class.
Assessment
Continuous assessment activities
| Title | Weight | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Working groups | 40% | 20 | 0.8 | 2, 5, 6, 7, 10 |
| Debats and participation | 10% | 5 | 0.2 | 6, 8, 9, 10 |
| Individual work | 50% | 20 | 0.8 | 1, 3, 4, 7, 8 |
Attendance
The students need to attend at least 80% of the classes to pass the course. The lack of attendance because of disease or any other justified reasons have to be justified. Other absences need to be approved in advance.
Classes start on time. Students cannot enter once the class has started or cannot leave before its end, except when duly justified.
Evaluation
The participation in the weekly debates will represent 10% of the final grade
Two ongoing evaluation exercises will be done during the course:
- An analysis of a text (20% of the final grade)
- An analysis of a new (20% of the final grade)
Final Exam (50 % of the final grade).
It is necessary to obtain at least a 5 in the final exam to pass the course and make an average with the continuous evaluation.
The student will be evaluated as long as he/she does a minimum of 2/3 parts of the qualifying activities. If the number of activities does not arrive to this minimum, the teacher of the course can consider the student as not evaluated.
Reassessment
The student who has failed the continuous evaluation can do the reevaluation exam
The maximum grade to be obtained in the reevaluation will be a 6.
Single assessment
The student who has requested the only stage evaluation will do the following exercises the same day of the final exam:
Final exam (50% of the final grade)
Analysis of a text (25% of the final grade)
Analysis of a new (25% of the final grade)
The same reevaluation system for the continuous evaluation will be also applied for the one stage evaluation.
The same criteria of no evaluable of the continuous evaluation will be also applied for the one stage evaluation.
Fraudulent behaviour
If the student copies or tries to copy in an exam, the grade of the course will be 0 and with no right to re-evaluation. If the student submits a practical case and there is evidence of plagiarism unable to sufficiently explain, he/she will be warned. If he/she reiterates, the final grade of the course will be o and no right to reevaluation.
“Restricted use: “For this subject, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is allowed exclusively in [support tasks, such as bibliographic or information search, text correction or translations. The student must clearly identify which parts have been generated with this technology, specify the tools used and include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and the final result of the activity. The lack of transparency of the use of AI in this assessable activity will be considered a lack of academic honesty and may lead to a partial or total penalty in the grade of the activity, or greater sanctions in serious cases."
Bibliography
Compulsory readings
Almeda Samaranch, E., Camps Calvet, C., & Ortiz Monera, R. (2022). Mujeres, cárceles y feminismos. Revista Española de Investigación Criminológica, 20(N.º Extra 2).
Bodelón, Encarna (2014). Violencia institucional y violencia de género. Anales de la Cátedra Francisco Suárez, 48, 131-155. https://doi.org/10.30827/acfs.v48i0.2783
Heim, Daniela (2012). Más allá del disenso, los derechos humanos de las mujeres en contextos de prostitución. Derechos y Libertades, 26, 297-327.
Heim, Daniela (2019). Feminismos y derecho penal: de las alianzas estratégicas al desarrollo de derechos. Cuestiones Criminales, 2, 167- 177.
Igareda González, N., & Cruells López, M. (2025). Antipunitivismo y feminismo: El papel de los delitos por violencia contra las mujeres en la expansión del derecho penal en España. Revista Derecho y Género, 2, 93–114. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/derechoygenero.22
González,Prado, Patricia (2020). Jurisprudencia comparada sobre aborto: cuando los feminismos impregnan el derecho. Cuadernos Electrónicos de Filosofía del Derrecho, 42, 135-157. http://dx.doi.org/10.7203/CEFD.42.16026
La Laboratoria. (2024a). En la tela de araña: Las violencias contra la infancia y la lucha de las madres protectoras. La Laboratoria.
Meneses-Falcón, C., & Albertín-Carbó, P. (2026). Prostitución y trata sexual: Investigar con rigor más allá de la ideología. RELIES: Revista del Laboratorio Iberoamericano para el Estudio Sociohistórico de las Sexualidades, (15), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.46661/relies.12658
Navarro Villanueva, Carmen, Cubells Serra, Jenny, Madres con adicciones en prisión: perfil, experiencias en prisión y expectativas de futuro, Boletín criminológico, ISSN 1137-2427, ISSN-e 2254-2043, Vol. 30, Nº Extra 237, 2024, págs. 1-24
Vasilescu, C. (2023). Analizando los trabajos en beneficio de la comunidad en Cataluña desde una perspectiva de género. *Política Criminal: Revista Electrónica Semestral de Políticas Públicas en Materias Penales*, 18(35).
Other readings
Acale Sánchez, M. (2017). El género como factor condicionante de la victimización y de la criminalidad femenina. Papers, 102(2), 1–30
Almeda Samaranch, Elisabet,Di Nella, Dino, Navarro Villanueva, Carmen, Mujeres, cárceles y drogas: datos y reflexiones, Oñati socio-legal series, ISSN-e 2079-5971, Vol. 2, Nº. 6, 2012 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Diferencias Invisibles: Género, Drogas y Políticas Públicas. El enfoque de género en las políticas europeas de drogas / coord. por Xabier Arana Berastegi, Iñaki Markez Alonso, Virginia Montañés Sánchez),págs. 122-145
Almeda Samaranch, E. (2017). Criminologías feministas, investigación y cárceles de mujeres en España. Papers, 102(2), 151–181.
Almeda, Elisabet (2017). Criminologías feministas, investigación y cárceles de mujeres en España. Papers, 102(2),151-181. http://dx.doi.org/10.5565/rev/papers.2334
Amado, A., & Cardi, C. (2025). Quand le genre s’impose à la prison: Analyse sociologique et juridique des contradictions du droit et des politiques pénitentiaires en matière de discriminations fondées sur le genre. Intersections. Revue, Genre et privations de liberté, (4), 2–18.
Bodelón, E. (2012). Violencia de género y las respuestas de los sistemas penales. Didot.
Canyelles, C. (2023). Machismo y cultura jurídica: Etnografía del proceso judicial de la violencia de género. Virus.
De Miguel Calvo, E., Valenzuela-Vela, L., & Alcázar-Campos, A. (2026). Pensando las violencias machistas desde un feminismo no punitivo: ¿Son posibles otras respuestas? Encrucijadas: Revista Crítica de Ciencias Sociales, (26).
Fernández Bessa, C. (Dir.), Fraga Sáenz, R. (Coord.), González Sánchez, I. (Coord.), & Castro Liñares, D. (Coord.). (2025). Criminología pública y feminismos no punitivos: Violencia sexual, género y castigo. Tirant lo Blanch.
Juliano, D. (2011). Presunción de inocencia: Riesgo, delito y pecado en femenino. Gakoa.
Lagarde, M. (1990). Los cautiverios de las mujeres: Madres, monjas, putas, presas y locas. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
Larrauri, E. (2023). ¿Tienen género las garantías del proceso penal? Indret: Revista para el Análisis del Derecho, (3).
Larrauri, E., & Varona Gómez, D. (2025). Declaraciones imperfectas y agresión sexual: Reflexiones a propósito del «caso Alves». Indret: Revista para el Análisis del Derecho, (2).
Maqueda Abreu, M. L. (2014). Razones y sinrazones para una criminología feminista. Dykinson.
Maqueda, María Luisa (2020). Trata, prostitución forzada y esclavitud sexual de las mujeres. bases para un debate libre de dogmatismos. Revista de Derecho Penal, 28, 213-223.
Martínez-Perza, Carmen, Quesada-Arroyo, P., de Miguel-Calvo, Estibaliz, Dzvonkovska, Natalia, & Nieto-Rodríguez, Lucía (2021). Situación de las personas con adicciones en las prisiones españolas. una visión con perspectiva de género. Unión de Asociaciones y Entidades de Atención al Drogodependiente (UNAD). https://www.unad.org/ARCHIVO/documentos/biblioteca/1676366563_2023_01_16_estudio_prisiones_version_digital.pdf
Martín Palomo, M. T. (2002). Mujeres gitanas y el sistema penal. Revista de Estudios de Género: La Ventana, 2(15), 149–174.
Meneses Falcón, C., & Urío Rodríguez, S. (2021). La trata con fines de explotación sexual en España: ¿Se ajustan las estimaciones a la realidad? Revista Española de Investigaciones Sociológicas, (174), 89–108.
Méndez, J. (2021). Criminología feminista: Una revisión bibliográfica. Asparkía, (39), 233–253.
Mestre i Mestre, R. (2021). El trabajo sexual es trabajo: Dos argumentos pro derechos de las trabajadoras del sexo. Jueces para la Democracia, (101), 45–56.
Navarro, Carmen (2018). El encarcelamiento femenino. Atelier.
Ribas, N., Almeda Samaranch, E., & Bodelón, E. (2005). Rastreando lo invisible: Mujeres inmigrantes en las cárceles. Anthropos
Vasilescu, C. (2017). Mitos y realidades en torno a la prostitución. *Indret: Revista para el Análisis del Derecho*, (3).
Software
It is not needed
Course groups and languages
The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE
| Type of teaching | Group | Language | Semester | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM30) Seminaris (30 estudiants per grup) | 11 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |