Exploring Harm & Victimisation

Overview

The module explores the causes and consequences of being victimised through various harms. Students will chart the historic emergence of victimology as an academic area of study; trace the emergence of the victims’ rights movement; critique different theoretical perspectives on harm, victimhood & victimisation; critically examine a range of micro and macro-level harms that lead to individual and collective victimisation; explore different representations of victimisation; critically analyse victim agency & activism; and critique legal and non-legal, and official and grassroots responses to victimisation. The module will draw upon a number of different case studies from around the world - including observations from the Global South – to help students engage with and understand victimisation and harm in a ‘real world’ and global context.

Learning Objectives

Upon successful completion of the module, students should be able to:
• Understand the social, political, cultural and legal contexts within which the concepts of ‘victim’ and ‘harm’ are constructed and mediated
• Critically examine the causes and consequences of victimisation through various inter-personal, inter-group and structural harms
• Identify and apply different methodological and theoretical approaches (narrative & visual) for engaging with and understanding victim testimony, portrayals of harm & victimhood in popular culture, and media discourses on harm & victimisation
• Critically analyse the role of victims as rights holders entitled to legal redress and as activists campaigning for social justice
• Develop and communicate academic arguments on harm & victimisation that are well-grounded in and appropriately referenced to existing academic literature

Skills

This module aims to enable students to develop the following skills:
• Synthesise, analyse and evaluate evidence from a number of written and non-written sources before drawing appropriate conclusions
• Communicating complex research and ideas in a clear, concise and structured manner that employs appropriate evidence for support
• Ability to communicate through writing and non-written forms with a plurality of target audiences
• Engage in critical reflection and independent thinking that leads to new insights into and different perspectives on sensitive problems and issues in contemporary society
• Time planning and workload management

Assessment