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CRI-20046 - Module Specification
School of Social Sciences
Faculty of Business, Law, Humanities & Social Sciences

For academic year: 2026/27 Last Updated: 17 March 2026

CRI-20046 - Crime across borders
Coordinator: Santiago Abel Amietta Tel: +44 1782 7 34064
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 5
Credits: 30
Study Hours: 300
School Office:

Programme/Approved Electives for 2026/27

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2026/27

This module will introduce you to cross-border crime and the impacts of globalisation and technological innovation on crime and criminal justice. You will learn how cross-border flows impact upon transnational crimes such as: drug use and distribution; human trafficking; immigration crimes; terrorism; cybercrime; hate crime; state crime; organised crime; and environmental crime. You will explore theories of globalisation, risk and network societies, and delve deeper into perspectives that decentre the nation-state, such as post- and de-colonial criminology, green criminology and queer criminology.

Aims
This module explores how criminology seeks to understand the impact of globalization and glocalised social change associated with late modernity on crime and criminal justice. It introduces students to the key characteristics of transnational criminality, the institutional mechanisms developed to address it, and the major conceptual and empirical literature in this field. The module also critically examines the notion of the ‘border’ as both a physical and political barrier to mobility, with particular attention to the complex intersections between criminal justice systems, migration, and other forms of minoritisation.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Explain the impact of globalisation and other processes of social change on crime and criminal justice: 1,2
Evaluate the relevance and limits of criminological knowledge in explaining the consequences of rapid social change and developments in crime and social control at global and local levels: 1,2
Evaluate criminological theories and apply them to the analysis of contemporary social problems and institutions related to the idea of the border: 1,2
Critically assess the impact of colonialism on historical and contemporary criminal justice practices, and on the production and global dissemination of criminological knowledge: 1,2
Explain a range of perspectives through which the connection between immigration and crime can be explored: 2

Study hours

22 hours of in-situ lectures
22 hours of in-situ seminars
2 x 2 hours of in-situ assessment workshops
44 hours of directed preparation for lectures and seminars via engagement with online asynchronous activities and information specific to each activity.
208 hours of private study (including additional self directed preparatory reading and related preparation for lectures and seminars, preparation,
planning and writing up of assessments)

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Group Assessment weighted 20%
Group case study presentation
Working in small groups (3–5 students), you will prepare and deliver a 10-15-minute presentation analysing a case study of your choice that connects to one or more of the module’s teaching themes — for example, globalisation and crime, postcolonial criminology, environmental justice, state or corporate crime, migration and punishment, cybercrime, or transnational policing. Your group should identify a real-world example or event (historical or contemporary) and use relevant criminological concepts, theories, and research to critically examine how it illustrates key global dynamics in crime, justice, and social control. You are encouraged to draw on readings and ideas from across the module as well as your own independent research.

2: Essay weighted 80%
2,500 words authentic case study analysis with a reflexive section
Students will write a 2500-word case study report of an example of transnational criminality or border criminology, based on a case study of their choice from the discussions in the module. Ample opportunities for formative feedback on the choice of case and perspective to discuss it will be available. This assessment will encourage students to apply analytical approaches, concepts, theories and learning from lectures, reading and small group activities on the module. The essay will have a reflexive section, calling for students to reflect on the links between the module materials and the student’s own experiences and positionality, and the meanings attached to them.

The University undertakes a continuous review of its teaching and research provision to ensure programmes are of a high quality and changes may be made to modules where it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Please be aware that minor changes to modules, such as a change to an individual assessment, can occur up until enrolment, although we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes. Details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/legalgovernancecompliance/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/studenttermsconditions/

Last Updated: 17 March 2026