Why Criminology Anyway?

When I was younger, so much younger than today …

I did an undergraduate degree in Geography and Sociology, I was interested in the spaces people inhabited and how societies acted as they did. 

I did a Criminology and Psychology degree because I wanted to know how people thought and why only some committed crime.

In later life, I know why I want to focus on Criminology in my Masters’: It is a fascinating subject area with many complex arguments and even more questions. What is crime anyway and why is a crime not considered such in some parts of the world? Why doesn’t ‘beat’ policing work? Why do we need to crackdown on international terrorism and how do we do it? 

From the enduring theories of criminology to the approaches to community, international and cyber-crime it is a topic which I just cannot let go. Crimes not judged to be worthy of that name but causes of harm nonetheless. Why is it so difficult to find those responsible for corporate crime? Why not try a victim-centred strategy, spending more time  treating the victim and preventing further crime than finding the perpetrator? Does restorative justice work, can it prevent crime? So many questions, so many potential answers. 

I take a special interest in hate crime. Hate crime is different in that instead of studying the criminal act that has been perpetrated, the focus can rest on the motivation. Why did this person choose to hate that one? Why has hate crime been ignored for so long? What on earth can we do to try to eradicate it? Criminology needs people to study, analyse and talk about crime. Will you be one of these?

Criminology however is a wider topic. For busy professionals in the security industry or in criminal justice the University of Leicester has a range of Distance Learning courses which can be studied at home or in the workplace: Security and Risk Management can be studied from Foundation to Masters’ levels. Managing Security and Risk in Healthcare Settings is offered as a Continuing Professional Development course. While, Security, Conflict and International Development (SCID) and Criminology and Criminal Justice are both available at Masters’ level. 

So much to find out and journeys to develop are available.