BSc (Hons) Criminology and Criminal Justice Bachelor's degree at the University of Kent

How can we explain criminal, deviant and harmful behaviour? You'll explore a range of criminological, sociological and psychological ideas that attempt to answer this question. Each week, you'll be introduced to academic theories designed to explain the causes of crime, deviance, and/or harm. You'll be taught about the contents of such ideas, the historical context from which they have emerged, approaches to crime control they have been used to support, and their apparent strengths and limitatio

What is criminology, and what does it mean to study it? This module provides students with an overview of the field of criminology, exploring a range of theories, research methods, and key concepts related to crime, deviance, and social control. You'll examine debates relating to the causes and consequences of crime, the strengths and limitations of approaches to criminal justice, and the role of various institutions in determining and responding to criminal behaviour. You'll explore these topic

What does it mean to possess an 'imagination' as a social scientist – and as a criminologist more narrowly? You'll cover the important work of C Wright Mills on the sociological imagination, before moving on to explore Jock Young's seminal work on the criminological imagination. In taking this module, you'll learn that criminology is an interdisciplinary subject, with specific links with related disciplines such as sociology, social policy, law, psychology and many more. Each week, your lecture

Society is complex, and there are many different approaches researchers have taken to studying it. In fact there has been so much written – so many thousands of books and articles of research and theory on every aspect of how society works – that it can seem overwhelming. Where do we even start? On this module, you'll learn how we, as social scientists, study society. What is the difference between evidence and theory? How do we know when we know something, and how confident can we be in that kn

What do we mean by the term 'criminal justice system', and what is its role in contemporary society? What agencies make up the criminal justice system? How are those agencies funded, and who gets to decide how they are run or if changes should be made? How do we know if the criminal justice system is working, and how can it be held to account? How is criminal justice policy made? You'll explore these questions and more on this module, by looking in depth at the criminal justice systems in the UK

What can a criminology and criminal justice student do beyond their degree? The module proposes answers to this question and outlines the different roles within the criminal justice system often occupied by those with criminology degrees. You'll also be encouraged to explore the areas in which criminological skills can be useful (including working for third sector organisations, government departments, non-governmental organisations and research institutions). The potential for criminology and c

Exploring a range of topics that serve as topical case studies, you'll be introduced to a range of contemporary issues within the field of criminology and criminal justice. With each topic chosen because of its significance to emerging debates and perspectives within criminological studies, you'll examine these debates and discover how contemporary criminological ideas and concepts can help us understand real-world events. You'll also learn how policy and practice impacts our understanding of ke

Research methods are – together with theoretical frameworks and empirical material – one of the three main pillars of the study of human society. The social sciences are methodologically very diverse and apply a number of different approaches that can be summarised under the quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. This module unlocks the power of data analysis for students from a variety of educational backgrounds - no statistical knowledge is necessary. In our data-driven world, un

In what ways are various inequalities relevant to crime and the delivery of criminal justice? This module examines the complex relationship between social inequalities and the criminal justice system, focusing on how disparities in socioeconomic status, race, gender, and other factors contribute to patterns of crime, victimisation, and access to justice. Through theoretical analysis and empirical research, students will explore the ways in which structural inequalities intersect with criminal ju

Explore the major issues and controversies that have shaped key developments in contemporary social theory. We will survey the development of social theory through the second half of the twentieth century and up to the present day. Following on from the earlier module on 'classical' social theory, it questions the distinction between the 'classical' and the 'contemporary' to highlight the intellectual decisions, values and problems involved in the packaging of social theory under these terms

We live in a deeply unequal world – one in which your education, wealth, power, and even health can be determined not by your intelligence or character, but by the social group you belong to. The study of these social inequalities has been central to Sociology right from its beginnings as a discipline. In this module, you'll learn how deep social divisions by gender, ethnicity, and social background really are, how they come about, and how they might be challenged. You'll read what classical and

Society is becoming ever more digitally centred – from work to leisure, our activities are centred around 'the digital.' Do the ways we study society need to change in line with the ways we live within it? This module provides you with the chance to critically assess this, and related questions, while offering digital methods training to conduct your own research. To do this, though, we need to do two things. First, you will critically reflect on issues around digital data and methods. This incl