Crime, Control and the City SOCIO5117

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Social and Political Sciences
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
  • Typically Offered: Either Semester 1 or Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

This course introduces students to key debates in urban criminology to re-examine the city as a meeting point for socio-political processes of criminalisation and control. By focusing on different areas of criminological inquiry through the lens of the urban and the city, students will be introduced to key theoretical and empirical debates within criminology on the city as a space for understanding crime dynamics, patterns, and processes. The course requires active participation in discussions and will draw on an interdisciplinary body of scholarship from Criminology, Sociology, and Urban Geography.

Timetable

Lecture: one hour per week, for 10 weeks

Seminar: one hour per week, for 10 weeks

Requirements of Entry

None

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

The assignment is divided into two parts.

1. A 3,000-word essay (essay questions will be provided) (75%)

2. A group presentation on a crime control policy in one city (suggested cities to focus on will be provided) (25%)

Course Aims

The course introduces students to key debates in research on crime, control, and the city. It draws on case studies of criminological research to illuminate the connection between crime, control, and the city. It provides participants with a framework for analysing differences across geographical contexts in how cities shape criminalisation and control in the urban environment through engagement with interdisciplinary literature.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Describe and explain key debates within criminological research on crime, control, and the city

■ Apply key theoretical concepts within criminology and urban geography to the study of crime, control, and the city

■ Critically evaluate the intersection of criminological research and research on the city across geographical contexts

■ Analyse different areas of criminological research for their relevance and applicability to key debates within research on city development

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.