SOC6003 - Crimes of the 21st Century

Objectives:

Assessment tasks are designed to enable students to demonstrate the Learning and Employability outcomes for the relevant level of study. Level Learning Outcomes are embedded in the assessment task(s) at that level. This enables a more integrated view of overall student performance at each level.

Content:

A core aspect of criminology is to understand and explain why people are willing to commit crime, and to inflict harm on others and themselves. As Hall and Winlow (2018: 43) questioned “why do some individuals and groups risk harm to others as they pursue their instrumental and expressive interests rather than seek solidarity with one another?”

This module seeks to address this question by exploring the extent to which criminological theory can help us to understand criminality (and harm) in the 21st Century. A fledgling period which has already seen rapid and dramatic transformations:

Socially (protests, uprisings)
Environmentally (climate change)
Economically (Global financial crisis, austerity)
Technologically (social media, dark web).

How have these significant changes, influenced the subject and subjective relations? Throughout this module, students will critically assess which contemporary criminological theories can help us to understand and adequately respond the negative consequences (crime/harm) of such developments. Furthermore, and crucially, how can such theories explain why we are willing to inflict harm on others and ourselves?

Learning and Teaching Information:

Lecture
Hours: 40
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Seminar/Workshop
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: 30

Guided independent study
Hours: 240

Assessment:

001 Critical review of a journal article; 2,500 words; end of semester 1 40%
002 Essay; 4,000 words; semester 2 60%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - Liam Wrigley
Level - 6
Credit Value - 30
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 6YL

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