SP10357: Crime and society
[Page last updated: 01 August 2022]
| Academic Year: | 2022/23 |
| Owning Department/School: | Department of Social & Policy Sciences |
| Credits: | 12 [equivalent to 24 CATS credits] |
| Notional Study Hours: | 240 |
| Level: | Certificate (FHEQ level 4) |
| Period: |
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| Assessment Summary: | CW 20%, PF 80% |
| Assessment Detail: |
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| Supplementary Assessment: |
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| Requisites: | |
| Learning Outcomes: | By the end of this unit students will be able to:
1. Outline and discuss different conceptions of 'crime', and critically evaluate how these different definitions are deployed in policy, politics, and public debate; 2. Identify and assess ways in which crime, and societal responses to it, are subject to historical and cultural change; 3. Interpret and synthesise different sources of evidence about crime; 4. Describe and apply competing theoretical explanations for crime. |
| Aims: | 'Crime' is a heavily contested term within criminology. The key aim of this unit is to introduce students to criminological debates about this concept - that is, competing definitions of 'crime', how the 'problem of crime' has been differently-constructed over time, and the political uses of 'crime' and criminal justice. The unit explores, too, the core theoretical debates around the causes of and explanations for criminal offending. In doing so, it starts to sketch out the history of criminology as an academic discipline, and prompts students to think about its relationship to cognate disciplines (such as sociology, psychology, and philosophy). |
| Skills: | The unit will foster the following intellectual skills:
* The ability to draw on and synthesise evidence from a range of sources * The ability to assess the merits and appropriateness of different explanations for crime and deviance * The ability to develop a reasoned argument and exercise critical judgement The unit will foster the following professional/practical skills: * The ability to critically reflect on different theoretical/methodological approaches within criminology * Written and oral communication skills The unit will foster the following transferable/key skills: * The ability to develop and present a well-structured, coherent essay. * The ability to marshal evidence and theory to support or challenge an argument in such a way as to demonstrate a critical awareness of the origin and bases of knowledge * The ability to apply key concepts in criminology and cognate disciplines to a range of problems * The ability to work and communicate as individuals, as well as in a team * Skills in information technology * Critical and analytical skills. |
| Content: | This unit will cover topics such as:
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| Programme availability: |
SP10357 is a Designated Essential Unit on the following programmes:Department of Social & Policy Sciences
SP10357 is Optional on the following programmes:Department of Social & Policy Sciences
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Notes:
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