Course Coordinator: Chan Wai Leung, BSSc (Hons), MPhil (CUHK)
SOCI A208 is a middle-level 20-credit social science course that introduces students to many issues in welfare and crime control. The course basically examines the different ways in which the worlds of social welfare provision and crime control are interwoven and entangled.
Students are reminded that a good standard of English is required to understand the course materials.
Advisory prerequisite(s)
Students are advised to have already studied at least one of the following courses before taking this course: SOSC A101/SOSC A111C, SOCI A202/SOCI A202C.
Aims
SOCI A208 explores the entanglements between the worlds of social welfare provision and crime control. Through studying the course, you are expected to develop the skills and knowledge to think critically about the relationship between social welfare and crime control. More specifically, the course aims to:
- develop learners’ understanding of the concepts of welfare, crime and society;
- explore how major concepts, including surveillance, social justice, security and community, help to understand the relationship between welfare, crime and society;
- consider the contested nature of evidence in the study of the relationship between welfare and crime control;
- develop learners’ understanding of the relationship between evidence, social science and policy; and
- help learners acquire the study skills essential to social science and lifelong learning.
Contents
There are altogether five components in this course:
- The first unit is an Introduction to the central concerns of the course by focusing on the concept of surveillance. It invites you to begin to think about how the entanglements between welfare and crime control can be seen through practices of surveillance.
- The second unit examines the ambiguities of the welfare/crime relationship through a focus on the concept of social justice. It invites learners to think about what is 'social' about social justice, the changing and contested definitions of social justice, and how ideas of social justice have shaped both social welfare and crime policy responses.
- The third unit explores the welfare/crime relationship through the notion of security. It invites learners to think about the different ways in which security can be thought about, the ways in which social fears and insecurities are generated and reproduced, and how these influence the development of social welfare and crime control policies.
- The fourth unit explores the welfare/crime relationship through a focus on the community. It invites you to think about the multiple meanings and connotations of the term 'community' and the ways in which it is seen as a site of security and social order, as well as a source of social problems.
- The conclusion looks back across the main question and themes of the course. It reflects on how the key sites of surveillance, social justice, security and community help us understand the complex and dynamic relationship between welfare, crime and society.
Learning support
There will be two-hour tutorials and day schools at regular intervals.
Assessment
There will be six assignments, which are required for assessment purposes, and a final examination. Students are required to submit assignments via the Online Learning Environment (OLE).
Set book(s)
There are no set books for this course.
