The module aims to:

Develop students’ understanding of theories and concepts in social harm and how they apply in globally diverse settings

Encourage students to engage with a range of ‘open’ evidential sources and apply them to specialist topics in criminology and criminal justice

Embody a critical approach to evaluating the limitations of criminal justice and criminological responses to harm

Address structural inequalities in specific contexts and encourage students to critically reflect on them in relation to global social harms

(LO1) At the end of this module students will be able to demonstrate originality in applying theoretical frameworks and principles to global social harms.

(LO2) At the end of this module students will be able to critically analyse a range of ‘open’ evidential sources and apply them to specialist topics in criminology and criminal justice.

(LO3) At the end of this module students will be able to critically evaluate the limitations of criminal justice and criminological responses to harm.

(LO4) At the end of this module students will be able to systematically contextualise how structural inequalities can be understood in relation to global social harms.

(S1) Analytical skills: Students will learn how to think critically and analytically about secondary data

(S2) Research Skills: Students will learn how to research social harms in a global context

(S3) Intellectual Creativity: Students will explore independent research interests in their assessments enabling them to use their intellectual creativity

(S4) Investigatory skills: Students will gather, investigate and critically interrogate a wide range of secondary data sources when undertaking their coursework.

(S5) Reflexive thinking skills: Students will learn how to appreciate the constructions and responses to social harms in various socio-cultural contexts

(S6) Take responsibility for their own learning.

(S7) Time management and prioritisation skills by working to deadlines.

(S8) Develop their skills in reading, analysing and synthesising different viewpoints and presenting their findings/conclusions in clear, comprehensible, structured format, with detailed argumentation where appropriate.

The module begins by examining the limitations of traditional criminological approaches in terms of conceptually grasping the full range of structurally determined forms of harm, their effects and tendency to impact on marginalized groups in society. The module problematizes how the notions of illegality and criminality offer the basis for understanding the range of harms embedded in social organization. From there the module moves on to critically consider theories and concepts about social harms in terms of how they might be applied to specific issues and contexts. A key part of the approach in the early part of the module is develop students’ understanding of how structural inequalities are manifest in globalised, diverse contexts and inextricably linked to socio-cultural arrangements, policy structures and economic processes.

After several weeks of conceptual consideration of social harm, the module moves on to explore some specific case studies of social harms aris ing in a variety of comparative global contexts. The specific content of these case studies will vary and be responsive to the evolving research interests and expertise of the module staff, but examples of key themes likely to be explored through the case studies are: Stigma, cultural and institutional harms; State and corporate harms in the Global South and North; Harms caused by criminal justice agencies and social policy architectures in diverse settings.

Teaching Method 1: Workshop

Scheduled Directed Student Hours: 20

Description: The module will be delivered via interactive workshops, thus embedding an active learning focus throughout all taught sessions. These sessions will be a combination of didactic and non-didactic teaching. This teaching approach also forms part of the formative feedback process for the module, as the flexibility of the workshops allows for student feedback from the module convenor and peers during group work and discussions.

Attendance Recorded: Yes

Self-Directed Learning Hours: 180

Description: Students will be expected to prepare for taught sessions every week by completing relevant reading and/or audio/visual materials in advance of each workshop.