School of Political and Social Inquiry

Disciplines

Anthropology; Behavioural studies; Criminology; Politics; Sociology; Women’s studies

The School of Political and Social Inquiry is made up of the disciplines of anthropology, behavioural studies, criminal justice and criminology, politics, sociology and women’s studies. It also includes the Centre for Women’s Studies and Gender Research, the Centre for Population and Urban Research, and the Centre for Work and Society in the Global Era (WAGE).

The school offers undergraduate and applied graduate courses, and honours and higher-degree supervision in all disciplines of the school and in a variety of interdisciplinary fields (taught in conjunction with other schools within the Faculty of Arts). It also offers graduate diplomas, coursework masters and higher research degrees in criminal justice, international relations, counter-terrorism studies, applied social research, communications, publishing and editing, and tourism.

The core disciplines traverse social and political theory, governance issues and also address issues of globalisation, national and international identity, causes of crime and the administration of justice along with the formation of particular cultural groups and networks.

Students completing an undergraduate degree with majors or minors in anthropology, behavioural studies, communications, criminal justice and criminology, politics, sociology and women’s studies acquire analytical and writing skills that enable them to seek employment in both the public and the private sector. Career options include positions in the mass media, government service in criminal justice and allied organisations, in market research organisations and working for political parties or welfare groups.

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of cultural diversity and the diversity of human expression through space and time.

Anthropologists are concerned with their own society, but only as one among many. When anthropology seeks to understand economics, politics, religion, violence, child-rearing or art, it aims eventually at a broad comparative knowledge which does not assume that the contemporary Western expressions are the most important, or even the most revealing, in the quest for an understanding of human cultures and societies. In fact, anthropologists have been led to examine in detail societies which are very different from their own, where ideas about beauty, morality, authority and dignity vary markedly from those with which they are familiar.

Anthropology’s comparative approach to understanding humanity is becoming increasingly important. In recent years, there has been a growth of major social and political movements throughout the world in which people are stressing a sense of community, shared identity and assertions of difference on the basis of factors such as ethnicity, sexuality, gender and status as indigenous peoples, which cut across national boundaries. At the same time, many people are expressing concerns for social justice issues, environmental degradation and so on. Anthropology is a vital discipline because of its emphasis on the importance of cultural difference in these diverse expressions of humanity.

Those who qualify as anthropologists, after undergraduate and graduate studies, may be in a position to engage in first-hand research, become advisers or consultants to industry, government and non-government organisations on a diverse range of matters, and teach. But our principal aim is to impart to all our students, regardless of the occupations they hope to pursue, an informed and culturally-sensitive awareness of their involvement in their own and other societies and cultures.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in anthropology, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Behavioural studies

The field of behavioural studies is concerned with a multi-disciplinary understanding of the biological, sociological, cultural and psychological bases of human behaviour and the variety of interpretations of the nature of human development, personality and interpersonal relationships. We offer an undergraduate program (minor, major, honours degrees) at the Clayton, Caulfield and Berwick campuses. At the undergraduate level behavioural studies units can be grouped into two streams: Lifecourse and lifecourse change; and Conflict and difference behavioural studies of lifecourse and lifecourse change

Lifecourse-related studies focus on human behaviour during and between various phases of an individual’s lifecourse: childhood, youth, adulthood and ageing/retirement. The past 30 or 40 years have witnessed many changes in these phases, and the ways in which we can understand these phases and transitions between them.

Behavioural Studies of Conflict and Difference

In this stream, the focus is on the study of behaviour and understandings of conflict and difference in a global environment. In this context, traditional views of relationships, gender roles, families and normal/abnormal behaviour have been profoundly challenged.

Behavioural studies is of interest to all those who would like to develop an understanding of people and human behaviour and the interaction of society and the individual. It is an excellent adjunct to the full complement of studies within the social sciences and humanities.

A foundation in behavioural studies prepares students for employment in most areas involving interpersonal interaction, particularly in the broader human services. It also serves as a platform for further studies in social work, welfare work, human services, counselling, mediation and education.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in behavioural studies, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Comparative cultures

Comparative cultures is an interdisciplinary course focusing on processes of social development, comparing ways of life found in societies of all kinds: modern and pre-modern, agrarian and industrial, capitalist and socialist, Eastern and Western. The course draws on the comparative and theoretical aspects of the school’s disciplines – anthropology, politics and sociology – bringing together units which, while focusing on a comparative understanding of cultures and societies, see a critical appraisal of relevant social, cultural and political theory as central to such a comparative perspective. Comparative cultures units are at the analytical edge of historical and comparative studies, self-conscious about method, constantly attempting to move beyond established ‘truth’. Given its overtly comparative, theoretical and interdisciplinary perspective, comparative cultures also encourages involvement in units outside the school as students engage with the many debates in this area which cut across not only anthropology, politics and sociology but also literary theory, history, philosophy and psychology.

Comparative cultures begins its specialisation at second year. Students normally use two first-year units in anthropology (see separate entry), politics (see separate entry) and/or sociology (see separate entry) as the basis for a minor or major in comparative cultures, but other units from cognate areas may be allowed.

Second-year units deal with the rise of capitalist societies, the study of culture, the current complexities of international politics, understanding prejudice and discrimination in its many guises, and the impact of scientific rationality on our view of the world and our place in it.

In the third year, students can choose from a wide range of options dealing with topics such as ethnicity, nationalism, globalisation and identity, media, gender and sexuality; the cultural construction of disabilities; Marxist, critical, structuralist and post-structuralist theories of society, culture and politics.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in comparative cultures, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

An honours program is also available for students wishing to specialise further and who may want to proceed to postgraduate research.

Criminology

Crime is an issue that all citizens and governments confront on a daily basis. The causes of crime, the crime problem and how it should be dealt with are the subject of intense debate. The major in criminal justice and criminology, which is offered on the Caulfield and Clayton campuses, provides students with the skills to understand the complexities of crime, to learn about the various stages of the criminal justice system, to critically analyse its workings and tensions, and to explore alternative strategies. Criminal justice and criminology students can combine an interest in areas such as policing, courts, punishment and prisons, transnational crime, criminological theory , crime and the media, crime and politics, crime prevention and victims of crime in order to broaden their career options in criminal justice and allied areas.

Students learn to critically analyse issues of crime at the local, state, national, and global level. The two first-year units ‘Understanding crime’ and ‘Criminal justice in action’ introduce students to various facets of crime and how it is dealt with by the criminal justice system. Second and third-year units build on the knowledge gained in first year and offer students the opportunity to critically analyse and evaluate crime-related issues in greater depth.

Graduates with a major or minor in criminology may find employment in a wide range of fields, including police, courts, corrections, human services, attorney-general departments, departments of justice, law reform commissions, ombudsman offices, anti-corruption commissions, local government and the private sector.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in criminology, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Politics

The politics program offers courses on the Caulfield and Clayton campuses, specialising in four broad areas: Australian politics and governance, international relations and global politics, political theory and philosophy, and comparative politics: Asia and the world. Students may specialise in one or more of these areas, but are encouraged to choose their units so as to explore the different approaches to political studies.

Politics is a very broad discipline, which tends to overlap continually with all the other major humanities and social science disciplines. It is, therefore, an excellent discipline for learning about the interrelationships that exist in the human world, and for acquiring a diverse range of interpretive, analytic and synthetic (especially conceptual) skills. The discipline is not just concerned with the study of government, policy or political institutions; it also studies resource allocation, decision making, social behaviour and political action, the management or resolution of conflict, power struggles, the struggle for political freedom, ideologies and political movements, the nature of the state and relations between states. It is especially concerned with the nature of power and authority, with ‘practical understanding’, with the relations between theory and practice and with the series of arguments which are created by the continual struggle by human beings to maintain their social existence and to devise more desirable and more satisfactory forms of human community.

Politics at Monash aims to offer students up-to-date coverage and explanation of many aspects of the contemporary world, developed and underdeveloped, coupled with a solid intellectual grounding in the key debates, texts and traditions of inquiry that one finds in the humanities and social sciences.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in politics, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Sociology

The focus of sociological teaching and research is the study of industrial and post-industrial societies in a global context. It involves the investigation of diverse human groups, communities, institutions and organisations, and the networks of meaning and association that link individuals and groups to the broader social structures of such societies. The wide range of units available is designed to provide students with the opportunity to explore broad theoretical and methodological issues. Sociology employs both classical and contemporary perspectives and uses a diverse range of interpretive, analytical and research skills in order to develop a critical understanding of the social institutions and processes of industrial and post-industrial societies.

Introductory sociology introduces students to a variety of perspectives and substantive areas of sociology: socialisation, deviance, the family, sexualities and gender, industrialisation and globalisation, class and social inequality. In later years, sociological theories and methods are examined in greater detail. A wide range of electives are available: sexuality and gender; men and masculinity; families labour and intimacy, youth and social change; ethnicity and minority relations; population and migration; multiculturalism and globalisation; women and madness; social psychology; children and society; and sociological theory and sociological research (both qualitative and quantitative). Many of these substantive units give students an understanding of the diverse aspects of Australian culture in its global context.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in sociology, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website at www.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Women’s studies

Women’s studies is an exciting interdisciplinary field of inquiry broadly concerned with questions of gender, sexuality and culture. Women’s studies is informed by the belief that all social processes are ‘gendered’ and women’s studies units bring innovative theory and research techniques to the study of women’s lives, their status in society and the dilemmas and contradictions in gender relations and sexualities. Women’s studies units cover specific topics such as how gender issues are represented in film, literature, popular culture, advertising and the media; feminist and gender theory; the relationship between gender and crime; the connections between gender, consumption and marketing; feminist research methodology; how different cultures shape gender identities and sexualities; shifting cultural and historical forms of femininity and masculinity; how questions of sex or gender relate to questions of class and race; and cross-cultural feminism. The undergraduate program is designed to introduce students to a variety of feminist models of analysis and to assist them in developing a range of methodological skills. Women’s studies units also foster the development of transferable professional skills among students. Units offered by the centre are complemented by a wide range of electives offered throughout the school and the faculty. Selected women’s studies units may be taken as electives within other majors in the school. Women’s studies units are offered on the Clayton campus and selectively on the Malaysia campus.

For information on the units required for a major or minor in women’s studies, refer to the ‘Areas of study’ section on the Arts faculty website atwww.arts.monash.edu.au/current/coursework/study-areas/.

Centre for Women’s Studies and Gender Research

Contact details

Telephone inquiries: +61 3 9905 2443 or email: PSI@arts.monash.edu.au

Relevant courses

For details of the following courses, see ‘Outline of undergraduate studies’ section:

Bachelor of Arts (and associated double degrees)
Bachelor of Arts (Global)
Bachelor of Communication
Bachelor of Letters
Diploma in Arts (Anthropology)
Diploma in Arts (Behavioural Studies)
Diploma in Arts (Comparative Cultures)
Diploma in Arts (Criminology)
Diploma in Arts (Politics)
Diploma in Arts (Sociology)
Diploma in Arts (Women’s Studies)

Contact details

Email psi@arts.monash.edu.au or visit www.arts.monash.edu.au/schools/psi/; inquiries (Clayton): room W1017, West Wing, Menzies building; +61 3 9905 2443; inquiries (Caulfield): room B4.35, building B; Telephone +61 3 9903 2378

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