Module SPRT2291: Sport, Crime and Deviance

Department: Applied Social Sciences (Sport)

SPRT2291: Sport, Crime and Deviance

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To encourage students to think sociologically about issues of crime and deviance in the context of sport;
• To introduce students to key theoretical approaches from the disciplines of Sociology and Criminology as a framework for understanding crime and deviance in the context of sport;
• To introduce students to a range of issues and debates pertaining to incidents of crime and deviancy in the context of sport;
• To develop students’ communication and presentation skills.

Content

• BLOCK 1: Conceptualising Sport, Crime, and Deviance: The opening teaching block introduces students to key Criminological and Sociological approaches to and debates concerning the concepts of ‘deviance’ and ‘crime’, thus providing students with a theoretical framework to underpin their study of official representations of, and responses to, ‘crime’ and ‘deviance’, as well as deviant and criminal practices in sport.
• BLOCK 2: Sport for Social Control / Social Development: This teaching block explores the theoretical perspectives behind the use of sport for both social control and social development, as well as evaluating examples of applied policies and practice (e.g. sport-based interventions). This will involve considering intended, but also unintended, consequences of intervention.
• BLOCK 3: Sport and the Role of the State: This teaching block examines the role of the State in legalising and criminalising sports, introducing students to basic criminal and tortious law before exploring key salient debates. These debates will reflect current political issues and be subject to research-led teaching interests, but may include: the prohibition of certain sports (e.g. fighting with animals; hunting with dogs); the legal regulation of gun sports; the legality/legal regulation of boxing/fighting sports; the regulation of sports spectators.
• BLOCK 4: Sport Mega Events, Governance and Corruption: This teaching block will examine incidents of criminal activity and corruption as they relate to sport mega-events. Topics covered may vary annually to reflect contemporary/newsworthy events and be subject to research-led teaching interests, with examples and case studies drawn from issues relating to: terrorism/security; sex-trafficking; scalping and counterfeiting; vote-rigging; bribery; match-fixing; racketeering and gambling.
• BLOCK 5: Deviant Athletic Bodies: The final teaching block will examine the notion of ‘body deviance’ in the context of sport and sports sub-cultures. Topics will reflect concurrent issues and be subject to research-led teaching interests, but may include: ‘body work’; body shape/weight; pain, injury and illness; drug (ab)use; use of technology/athlete cyborgification; violence in sport; child abuse. In addition to this subject-specific content, students will also receive a lecture on Communication and Presentation Skills and be give opportunities to develop these key employability skills in advance of their Summative Oral Presentation.

Learning Outcomes

• On completion of the module, students should be able to:
• Critically discuss key Criminological and Sociological approaches to and debates concerning the concepts of ‘deviance’ and ‘crime’ in the context of sport;
• Critically discuss the theoretical underpinnings and applied practice of using sport for social control and social development;
• Critically discuss the role of the State in legalising and criminalising sports;
• Critically discuss incidents of criminal activity and corruption as they relate to sport mega-events;
• Critically discuss the notion of ‘body deviance’ in the context of sport and sports sub-cultures.

• On completion of the module, students should be able to:
• Think critically about and discuss issues pertaining to crime and deviance in the context of sport, verbally and in writing;
• Develop sociological arguments, reflect, evaluate and assess theoretical approaches and pertinent issues, verbally and in writing;
• Evaluate, analyse and interpret information and evidence, verbally and in writing.

• On completion of the module, students should be able to demonstrate:
• Proficient and creative IT skills relating to the production of their Formative and Summative Essays and also their audio-visual aids (e.g. PowerPoint) to support their Summative Oral Presentation;
• Effective and engaging written and verbal communication skills (describing; debating; arguing; advocating; negotiating; presenting);
• An ability to source, manage and synthesise a diverse range of literature and other information resources;
• Efficient time-management skills and an ability to plan and organise workload, work independently and work collaboratively in small groups.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures: weekly lectures will be used to map out the main contours of this module. They will introduce students to key concepts, debates and issues concerning crime and deviance in the context of sport.
• Seminars: small group seminars allow students to explore in more detail themes and issues arising from lectures and associated reading, so deepening their understanding of key topic areas.
• Formative Presentations: a formative presentation allows students to develop and practice their verbal communication skills (describing; debating; arguing; advocating). Feedback is provided to enable students to critically reflect upon the development of their knowledge base and skills set.
• Summative Essay: a summative essay enables students to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of a specific topic in depth and to research and construct a systematic discussion within word-limited constraints.
• Summative Presentation: a summative presentation tests students’ verbal communication skills (describing; debating; arguing; advocating).

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

1 x 1500 words essay (Optional)

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University