Controversies in Crime Control

Controversies in Crime Control provides students with an introduction to the crime control field from a sociological vista. This course examines the social functions of deviance and explores the various strategies of securitization - e.g. private security growth, criminalization of mundane behaviours and social groups, hardening crime control legislation, mass surveillance and incarceration, etc. - emerging in response to what commonly is perceived as the 'crime crisis’. We consider the key issues associated with the identification and management of social problems and contemplate how behavioural disobedience, as a moral resource, is purposefully exploited for political and commercial ends. Using a set of case studies (or crime control 'controversies') as evidence, students will address the following key questions: - How are social problems defined and policed? - To what degree is public understanding of crime culturally mediated and influenced by specific rhetorics? - Which groups and interests effectively dictate crime control policies and criminal justice system agendas? - What are the social consequences of intensifications in criminalization processes and securitization projects? Overall, this course equips students with the appropriate knowledge, acuity and research skills to understand and engage the contemporary crime control landscape from a critically informed perspective.