Politics|Russian and East European Languages and Cultural Studies

After briefly examining the reasons for the introduction of glasnost and perestroika and the relationship between these and the collapse of the USSR, the...

After briefly examining the reasons for the introduction of glasnost and perestroika and the relationship between these and the collapse of the USSR, the module proceeds to examine the political system of the Russian Federation as it developed from 1991 onwards under Presidents Boris El’tsin, Vladimir Putin, Dmitrii Medvedev and Putin again from 2012. The module examines the causes of the adoption of the Constitution in 1993, the subsequent working of the constitution in practice, the re-election of El’tsin in 1996, and the reasons for Putin’s rise to power. The process of the rise of authoritarianism under Putin is examined. The module considers why Medvedev was chosen to succeed Putin, how much difference he made and why Putin clamped down on social protest after his return to power. Particular issues covered include the roles of political parties, the ‘oligarchs’, and the security services; human rights and civil society; Russian identity, nationalism, federalism, regionalism and the Chechen wars.

This module seeks to:

1. assist the student to develop an academic understanding of the Russian political system, political life and decision-making, in the period from perestroika to the situation today.

2. prepare the student for careers in government, research, the media, business, non-governmental organizations and others where knowledge of Russia will be useful.

3. develop the skills of the student as an analyst, researcher, presenter, debater and writer, for both vocational and intellectual purposes.

This module will focus on ethical challenges for police officers as they play out for all ranks, but particularly on ethical challenges for future leaders in...

This module will focus on ethical challenges for police officers as they play out for all ranks, but particularly on ethical challenges for future leaders in the service.

It will examine a range of ethical issues in policing, ranging from the ethics of everyday police work to questions of corruption and malpractice, and it will consider the need for future police leaders to foster an ethical climate in the force and to think about the ethical implications of everything they do as police officers.

The focus on ethics will be comprise three strands:

- Ethics in the application of police powers and procedures

- Ethics in personal conduct (bullying, sexism, racism)

- Ethics in professional conduct (abuse of process, financial impropriety, misjudgement)

Ethical decision-making in the professional sphere infused with the principles of procedural justice will be used to explored specific issues that pose ethical challenges such as use of force, stop and search, race relations, public order policing, balancing policing priorities vs. community needs, overseeing misconduct proceedings, and managing relationships with oversight bodies such as the IPCC and PCCs. Implications of the importance of maintaining high ethical standards for police legitimacy will be discussed.