Crimes of the powerful

Introduction

This free course examines crimes of the powerful, examining the complexities and barriers associated with setting new criminological research agendas by considering the difficulties associated with conducting research on crimes of the powerful. It asks you to think critically about how knowledge is constructed and contested, how we define what is ‘researchable’, and how we know what we know about the world. The project of knowledge-making is, in part, reliant on questioning and critiquing the status quo (Said, 1994, cited in Russell, 1997). New knowledges and ways of thinking can be significantly advanced when accepted or conventional understandings of the world or a particular phenomenon are challenged or differently conceived. Focusing on crimes of the powerful highlights the role that power plays in the setting of research agendas, knowledge making and in establishing the status quo.

This OpenLearn course provides a sample of postgraduate study in Criminology [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .