Political Corruption (L2046)

30 credits, Level 6

Spring teaching

On this module, you’ll explore the "dark side" of politics by analysing corruption in its various forms and contexts. You’ll develop analytical and theoretical tools to examine corruption across time and space, addressing questions such as:

• What constitutes corrupt behaviour?
• How do definitions of corruption differ across national boundaries?
• Is corruption absolute and universal, or context-dependent?
• Can corruption ever have positive effects?

You’ll study specific examples of corruption in the developed world, from systematic abuses of power by parties and politicians to minor, petty misdemeanours. This analysis will serve as a foundation for exploring potential reforms to reduce instances of political corruption in the western world.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 33 hours of contact time and about 267 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2024/25. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.