Course Descriptions

This course is intended to introduce students to the analysis of the relationship between crime and society. The core concept is that crime is embedded in social structure and process and therefore must be understood in relation to, rather than apart from, normal social activity. A variety of classical and contemporary perspectives on the definition, causes and consequences of crime will be explored and student analysis of contemporary issues involving crime in Canadian society will be encouraged.

This course examines the impact of contemporary crime prevention, surveillance and security practices. Students will learn how social control is achieved through a widening network of public and private agencies, including social services, law enforcement and urban planners, who regulate and 'police' our everyday interactions at the local, national and global levels. The second part of the course will focus on the targeting of minority and protest groups who are constructed as 'risks' to society, and impacts on Indigenous sovereignty.

This course explores the gendered experiences of women and LGBTQ2S+ people involved in all phases of the criminal justice system, such as victims/survivors, offenders, and professionals. We will critically engage with the intersections among gender, race, class, and sexuality, and analyze the ways in which these affect the treatment of women and LGBTQ2S+ people inside and outside the criminal justice system. Particular attention will be paid to the experiences of Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirited people, as well as the links between inequality and criminalization.

This course provides an overview of youth justice in Canada. It examines how youth crime has been constructed throughout history and how young people experience the criminal legal system today. Different forms of trauma suffered by youth before they have come in conflict with the law (individual, historical, intergenerational), and during their time within the system, are examined, as well as alternatives for dealing effectively with the problem of criminalizing young people.

This course examines the social world of drugs and drug users. It looks at how drug policy has developed over time, and the structural effects these policies have on shaping the culture of drug use in Canada today. It explores how changing social conditions shape how we understand addiction, what we know about the effect drugs have on our bodies, and how we think about prevention and harm reduction.

This course examines the law in relation to social relationships, processes, and structures. It will consider the social function of law and how the practice of law impacts different communities and individuals. The course will include discussion of how legal theories relate to conceptions of society, critiques of law from a sociological and feminist perspective, and the relationship between law as form of social control and change.

This course examines the relationship between minority groups and the criminal justice system. Students will analyze how unequal power relations are created and sustained through the operations of the police, courts, social services and correctional system both within Canada and internationally. Of particular concern is how crime and the justice system further marginalize minority groups, including those with statuses associated with gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, citizenship and religion.

Green criminology moves beyond an anthropocentric view of crime to include how and why certain forms of environmental harm are criminalized while other harms are encouraged by the state. It examines the various factors that drive these harms, such as capitalism, consumerism, and productivity, and considers different ways we might address these problems, including Indigenous perspectives which posit non-speciesist understandings for ecological wellbeing.

This course explores the theory and practice of restorative and transformative justice. In contrast to retributive models of criminal justice, restorative justice presents an alternative model based on the principle of restoring balance. Transformative justice goes beyond restoration by seeking to change the social conditions that generated the harmful behaviour. This course will compare these models with Indigenous Justice systems, while recognizing their distinctiveness.

Street level crimes, such as robbery and assault, receive a great deal of media attention, and yet what is happening at the level of the boardroom, i.e. misconduct on the part of corporations and states, contributes more financial loss, injury, and death than all street level crimes combined. This course will focus on understanding the crimes of the powerful, including those conducted by states, corporations, and wealthy individuals.

This course explores the operational realities of Canadian prisons and penitentiaries, focusing on the rules, regulations and legislation empowering federal, provincial, and territorial governments to create and maintain prisons systems. It explores the rights that apply to prisoners and the specific remedial mechanisms instituted to protect prisoners within a carceral setting in Canada and examines the problems which may arise in these environments, such as power and legitimacy, the complex needs of prisoners with mental health issues, and the use of prolonged isolation. Jurisprudence on these and other issues relating to the care and custody of prisoners is examined.

In what has been described as ‘the punitive era’, attention will be given to the rise in punitive sanctions, including its causes, consequences, and alternatives. This course is concerned with the sentencing and punishment of offenders. It considers, in historical context, the philosophical underpinnings of punishment; sentencing policy and practice within Canada; and the myriad forms of punishments available to respond to criminality. This course will analyze and reflect on public attitudes towards punishment, the sources of public punitiveness, and the relationship between public opinion and punishment policy.

Students will work with a Criminology faculty member to guide them in an independent study or research project. Specific course details will be arranged between individual students and faculty members.