Order, Disorder, Crime, and Deviance (CRIM20004)

Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)

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Overview

Availability
Semester 1
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This subject invites students to look anew at things we, as individuals and society, often take for granted, by analysing the nature of social order and how it inevitably creates non-conformity and deviance. This subject will help students to (a) explore what crime and deviance mean within a society that is often riven with civil conflicts and to (b) discover how does society hang together – and at what cost and whose expense.

To do so, we will explore classical and contemporary sociological and criminological theories that help to explain the nature of social order and crime and deviance. To enhance students’ analytical skills, each theory will be examined through grounded examples, as diverse as terrorism, witch hunts, religious cults, and industrial disasters, as well as current events in Australia and beyond. The application of theory to real-life cases will help students to determine theories’ strengths and limitations, and ultimately their value in understanding the diversity of human behaviour and social reactions to it, whilst developing a critical stance on how we as society define and deal with crime, deviance, order, and disorder.

Intended learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this subject should be able to:

  • Explain and apply main sociological and criminological theoretical approaches
  • Evaluate, compare, and contrast the propositions of these theoretical approaches and determine their relevance to specific real-life situations, whilst appreciating the diversity and dynamics of social contexts of increasingly heterogeneous, globalising world
  • Describe how individual experiences, behaviours, and social positions influence and are influenced by the broader social environment
  • Articulate and discuss in oral and written forms their own interpretations of real-life phenomena (e.g. 'social problems'), current events, and public debates, using various theoretical approaches to support and communicate effectively own arguments
  • By drawing on and applying main socio-criminological theoretical approaches, analyse and critique social order and the way the state deems some behaviours and certain populations as 'criminal' or 'deviant'.

Generic skills

Students who successfully complete this subject should be able to:

  • Demonstrate improved capacity of critical thinking and analysis
  • Work with individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds and be able to manage dynamics of working in teams.

Last updated: 9 April 2025

Eligibility and requirements

Prerequisites

None

Corequisites

None

Non-allowed subjects

None

Recommended background knowledge

Criminology at Level 1

Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)

The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.

Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home

Last updated: 9 April 2025

Assessment

DescriptionTimingPercentage

An online quiz

  • 600 words (equivalent)
From Week 3 to Week 515%

An essay

  • 1800 words
Mid semester45%

A timed 1.5 hours, open-book online exam

  • 1600 words (equivalent)
During the examination period40%
Hurdle requirement: 1. Attendance hurdle requirement: This subject has a minimum requirement of 80% attendance at tutorials, seminars, or workshops. There is an expectation that students attend lectures. Throughout the teaching periodN/A
Hurdle requirement: 2. Late Penalty and Assessment hurdle requirement: Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at five per cent (5%) of the possible marks available for the assessment task per day or part thereof. All pieces of assessment must be submitted to pass the subject. Each submitted assessment must be complete, constitute a genuine attempt to address the requirements of the task and will not be accepted after 20 University business days from the original assessment due date without written approval. Throughout the semesterN/A

Last updated: 9 April 2025

Dates & times

  • Semester 1
    Principal coordinatorAnton Symkovych
    Mode of deliveryOn Campus (Parkville)
    Contact hoursTotal of 30 hours: A 2 hour lecture and a 1 one hour tutorial per week for 10 weeks. The lecture and tutorial programs are staggered and cover the 12 weeks of semester.
    Total time commitment170 hours
    Teaching period 3 March 2025 to 1 June 2025
    Last self-enrol date14 March 2025
    Census date31 March 2025
    Last date to withdraw without fail 9 May 2025
    Assessment period ends27 June 2025

    Semester 1 contact information

    anton.symkovych@unimelb.edu.au

     

Time commitment details

Total of 170 hours

What do these dates mean

Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:

  • Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
  • And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
       -  Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
     

    Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.

Last updated: 9 April 2025

Further information

Last updated: 9 April 2025