Community Psychology

This module gives you a grounding in the values and principles of community psychology. You will gain insights into the theory and practice of psychology in the community from academic practitioners within a variety of contexts. You will have the opportunity to reflect on the process of social change in relation to your own communities and to wider notions of community.

This module provides you with advanced training in community research methods including research design, ethics, quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques and data analysis strategies. It includes an overview of the practicalities of conducting research within communities, creative research methods and conducting participatory action research.

In this module you will gain experience in the management and application of social research methods. You will explore theoretical, practical and ethical issues related to social research practice and work with community partners to apply social research methods in a professional context. You will also learn how to reflect on and evaluate social research and produce a social research report.

This module draws from disciplines including medicine, health, geography, sociology and critical community psychology to provide you with a grounding in the key debates around what constitutes mental distress and how to address it. Starting with a critical appraisal of the current dominance of clinical approaches, the module examines controversies in diagnosis and treatment, using examples from around the world to outline alternative approaches to addressing mental distress.

In this dissertation module you will identify and pursue an original empirical research question that addresses a clearly articulated pressing social problem within the field of community psychology. You will develop and apply a depth of knowledge about relevant research, theory and practice and use this to provide a compelling rationale for the research.