Accessibility statement

Understanding Contemporary Crime - SOC00059I

« Back to module search

  • Department: Sociology
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: I
  • Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
    • See module specification for other years: 2023-24

Module summary

This module employs an international focus to critically engage with crime and social responses to crime in media and public discourses. You will have the opportunity to undertake an analysis of specific globally significant incidents or events exploring their cultural and social context and societal reactions.

Related modules

By drawing upon concepts covered in the year one module ‘Explaining Crime & Deviance’ this module applies these criminological theories and concepts to further explore how key incidents and the subsequent societal and media reaction to them over time is constructed and represented.

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Semester 1 2024-25

Module aims

How do we, as criminologists, make sense of contemporary and emerging issues of crime, control and deviance? In this module we will adopt an international focus to critically engage with crime and social responses to crime in media and public discourses. You will have the opportunity to undertake an analysis of specific globally significant incidents or events exploring their cultural and social context and societal reactions. By drawing upon concepts covered in the year one module ‘Explaining Crime & Deviance’ this module applies these criminological theories and concepts to further explore how key incidents and the subsequent societal and media reaction to them over time is constructed and represented.

Module learning outcomes

Apply criminological theory and concepts to international contemporary and emerging issues of crime, control and deviance

Critically engage with crime and social responses to crime and deviance in media and public discourses

Communicate your ideas and arguments in diverse written formats

Articulate how societal and media reactions to issues of crime and deviance is constructed and represented

Indicative assessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Module feedback

For formative work - students will receive written or verbal feedback on how to improve their skills in areas that will contribute towards their summative assessment. Both formative assessments provide practice for the summative tasks which are in line with LO 1-4 particularly 3.

For summative work - students will receive an overall mark and grading according to clearly defined criteria for assessing their knowledge, skills and abilities in line with 1-4. They will also receive written feedback showing areas in which they have done well and those areas in which they need to improve that will contribute to their progress.

Indicative reading

Downes, D. and Rock, P. (2007) Understanding Deviance, (5th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lilly, J.R., Cullen, F.T., and Ball, R.A. (2011) Criminological Theory, (4th ed.) London: Sage.

Maguire, M. Morgan, R. and Reiner, R. (eds.) (2007) Oxford Handbook of Criminology, (4th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Tierney, J. (2006) Criminology, Hemel Hempstead: Prentice Hall/Harvester Wheatsheaf.

Williams, K.S. (2008) Textbook in Criminology, (6th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.


The information on this page is indicative of the module that is currently on offer. The University constantly explores ways to enhance and improve its degree programmes and therefore reserves the right to make variations to the content and method of delivery of modules, and to discontinue modules, if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary. In some instances it may be appropriate for the University to notify and consult with affected students about module changes in accordance with the University's policy on the Approval of Modifications to Existing Taught Programmes of Study.