58吃瓜

IR5858 State Terror: Historical Context and Current Iterations

Academic year

2026 to 2027 Semester 2

Further information on which modules are specific to your programme.

Key module information

SCOTCAT credits

15

The Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer (SCOTCAT) system allows credits gained in Scotland to be transferred between institutions. The number of credits associated with a module gives an indication of the amount of learning effort required by the learner. European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits are half the value of SCOTCAT credits.

SCQF level

SCQF level 11

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) provides an indication of the complexity of award qualifications and associated learning and operates on an ascending numeric scale from Levels 1-12 with SCQF Level 10 equating to a Scottish undergraduate Honours degree.

Availability restrictions

Restrictired to students enrolled on online PGT programmes in School of Interional Relations

Module coordinator

Dr B Blumenau

Dr B Blumenau
This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module Staff

Dr Bernhard Blumenau

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module description

This module provides an overview of state terror over the past century, while also considering earlier episodes that may qualify as such, even before the emergence of the modern state. Students will evaluate historical cases and examine potential ongoing instances of state terror. The module equips students with the analytical tools to grasp the phenomenon鈥檚 breadth and complexity and to engage with key episodes across a diverse set of continents and political contexts. It explores the causes, instruments, and consequences of state terror, highlighting the dynamics that enable state-perpetrated political violence and the obstacles victims face in resisting it. Case studies from Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas illustrate these themes.

Assessment pattern

Coursework = 100%

Re-assessment

Coursework = 100%

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact

There are no fixed weekly contact hours. Students will take part in asynchronous discussions and activities.

Scheduled learning hours

18

The number of compulsory student:staff contact hours over the period of the module.

Guided independent study hours

132

The number of hours that students are expected to invest in independent study over the period of the module.

Intended learning outcomes

  • Understand the historical development of the concept of state terror and its changing characteristics over time and in different contexts
  • Understand the evolution, ideological underpinnings, targeting rationales, and decline of different instances of state terror
  • Familiarise themselves with possible current forms of state terror and ways to assess them and their impact.
  • Articulate their understanding in written form through research papers, and orally through presentations as well as develop their skills to concisely and critically assess and present key information on a specific contemporary case of possible state terror
  • Develop their critical academic research skills, including the identification of relevant scholarship and of useful texts and information through the internet, as well as published archival documents