Unit information: Harms of the Powerful in 2021/22

Unit name	Harms of the Powerful
Unit code	SPOL20034
Credit points	20
Level of study	I/5
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Professor. Miller
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School for Policy Studies
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

The crimes and harms, including violence, committed by corporations and states are among the most devastating of all crimes and harms. This unit examines the nature, extent, and impact of the harms of the powerful and seeks to understand the various explanations for this type of activity. The specific aims of the unit are to:

• examine the crimes and harms of the powerful focusing on their nature, extent and impact
• theorise about the causes of the harms of the powerful
• examine the different approaches traditionally taken to law enforcement and policy intervention in this field and review their effectiveness.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of the unit students should be able to:

• demonstrate the different types of crimes and harms associated with corporate and state actors
• assess the prevalence and impact of their activities on society
• explain why such crimes and harms occur
• evaluate law enforcement strategies including recent policies and interventions (in both national and international levels) which attempt to hold corporations and states accountable for their actions.

Teaching Information

This unit will draw on a blended learning approach. Students will engage with asynchronous taught content (including, for example, narrated slides and other teaching and research materials) and will be tasked to complete activities in preparation for synchronous sessions to present and discuss ideas and clarify learning.

Assessment Information

Part 1: Blog (1000 words) 25%

• Part 1: Essay (2000 words) 75%

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. SPOL20034).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.