Level 2

This module starts with the question: how do social science perspectives change the way we understand and respond to the major environmental challenges of our time? You'll explore how understandings of environment and society had profound and unequal consequences for people and ecosystems across the planet, in the age of the Anthropocene. You'll also explore ways of understanding environmental and societal issues that are entangled in cultural, economic, social, and political terms and look at how these can provide the resources required to value environments differently and to build new models of responsibility required to navigate the Anthropocene.

This module introduces you to the many ways criminologists seek to explain crime, victims of crime and the role of criminal justice. Through the use of engaging topics, each study week begins with examples of crimes or criminal justice problems that you may recognise from the news, other media outlets and popular culture. It will gently introduce you to different criminological concepts and theories and you'll actively engage and explore these through the use of virtual learning environment activities and written assessment. You'll become equipped with the skills needed to understand theories and concepts about crime, and will advance your understanding of everyday social issues that may influence crime and victims of crime.

This module explores the nature of musical sound and the ways that technology can be used by creative musicians. You'll be introduced to the skills needed for making recordings, and the module resources include software packages for analysing and editing recorded sound. You'll study how the physics of sound underlie musical experiences, and investigate the acoustic properties of different instruments. The module aims to deepen your understanding of the nature of sound and to equip you better as a musician, whatever your background and musical interests.

This module takes an integrative approach, focusing on the everyday questions that psychology can help us to answer. Why do we help one another? Do you see what I see? How do we know what’s right? Investigating how we understand others and the world around us, the module draws on biological, cognitive, developmental and social research in psychology to help you answer questions such as these. You will also learn how to design and conduct your own research, covering a number of different methods for gathering and analysing evidence on psychological processes.

This module offers an accessible and cutting-edge introduction to the study of religions, exploring places, practices, texts and experiences. You will encounter a range of religious traditions, in particular Christianity, Hinduism and Islam, in diverse geographical, cultural and historical contexts. You will study these religions as they are actually lived and investigate their impact on different societies and cultures. The module challenges various widely held assumptions about religions and the study of religion, and engages students with three core questions: What is religion? How do we study religion? Why should we study religion? Drawing on rich audio-visual material, this module develops key skills for study and employability.

The British Isles in the long nineteenth century was a place of rapid expansion and growth, when the United Kingdom became the so-called ‘workshop of the world’. It was also a period of conflict and uncertainty, where poverty and political unrest prompted widespread anxieties about the nature progress. Taking up these different perspectives, this module looks at the landmark transformations of the period such as the political union of Britain and Ireland, industrialisation, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the British Empire. By focusing on one century, this module provides space for a deep engagement with historical method and debate.

In this interdisciplinary module you’ll cover key areas of international development. These include: different models of development; shifting power in the international system; the relationship between poverty, inequality and livelihoods; the impact of conflict and insecurity; and the role of technology and the environment. The history of development as a process of change, the power relationships in that process and the different scales at which development takes place from transnational to local, are themes running throughout the module. These themes integrate the material – using a mix of case studies, interactive activities, text and DVD – to provide a central narrative encouraging critical appraisal and curiosity. (60 credits)

This module draws on classic and contemporary theory and research in psychology and applies them to a broad range of contexts. You will learn how psychologists have studied both practical and theoretical issues, such as nationalism or sexuality, with a particular emphasis on understanding and solving problems that directly affect people’s lives. You will explore core academic areas of psychology as set out by the British Psychological Society (e.g. social, cognitive, developmental) and applied aspects of professional practice (e.g. clinical, forensic, counselling). You will also develop your understanding of psychological research methods, along with other useful academic and employability skills.

What is politics? Who is engaged in politics locally, nationally and internationally? How do we study politics? This online module answers questions like these and explores how political ideas, institutions and processes help govern our world. Using a range of study materials you will explore the interrelationships between politicians, pundits and publics. You will learn the key practical skills that are used to explore and explain the ways in which politics, in all its forms, helps order the social world and provide for the governance of persons and the administration of things. (60 credits)

This module responds to the need to understand the problems of running national and global economies in the wake of a major economic crisis. It starts with macroeconomics, looking at how economies work from global and integrated perspectives. It then moves to microeconomics, drilling down into the behaviour of people, firms and governments. This combined analysis allows you to start exploring how policy affects, and is affected by, the economy and its constituent members.