Module PSYC3717: Current Issues in Mental Health

Department: Psychology

PSYC3717: Current Issues in Mental Health

Prerequisites

• 60 credits from Level 2 Psychology

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• In this module you will learn about some of the key issues in contemporary mental health research and practice. Along with learning about specific mental health conditions (such as schizophrenia or depression), you will learn to navigate some of the main debates and controversies that affect mental health as a whole, including how we draw the boundaries between healthy experience and ill health in the general population.

Content

• This module examines theoretical and clinical approaches to conditions such as anxiety, phobia, depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder, and dissociation.
• It begins with a focus on psychiatric diagnosis, and how this might differ from the concept of “formulation” in clinical psychology. Other topics that will be covered include whether mental health conditions should be approached categorically or dimensionally, the utility of digital therapies, and the effectiveness of psychological therapy.
• The module will also cover related conceptual and historical issues in psychology

Learning Outcomes

• Detailed knowledge of mental health research and practice, including current theory and evidence

• Ability to review critically and consolidate understanding of a coherent body of psychological knowledge and apply it appropriately

• Good written communication skills
• Good IT skills in word processing
• Ability to work independently in scholarship and research within broad guidelines

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Students' acquisition of detailed knowledge will be facilitated by lectures, audio-visual materials, discussions and reading lists
• These modes of teaching provide students with detailed knowledge of the key theories and the skills needed to evaluate different theoretical positions in light of current evidence
• The examination will assess students' detailed subject knowledge through essays written during the examination.
• An assessment of the range, recency and appropriateness of sources will be included in the overall assessment of the exam essays
• The use of group discussions will ensure that students are exposed to a range of different theoretical positions, and encouraged to understand their inter-relations
• Lectures, discussions and online content will also give students the opportunity to interpret and evaluate the significance of empirical work
• The summative examination will also assess students' written communication skills
• The module will be taught using lectures supplemented with online material. enter text as appropriate for the module

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

None

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University