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Individual and Cultural Diversity (PSYC90009)
Graduate courseworkPoints: 6.25On Campus (Parkville)
For information about the University’s phased return to campus and in-person activity in Winter and Semester 2, please refer to the on-campus subjects page.
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
Semester 2
Please refer to the LMS for up-to-date subject information, including assessment and participation requirements, for subjects being offered in 2020.
Overview
Availability | Semester 2 |
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Fees | Look up fees |
When people develop psychological disorders, whether in childhood, adulthood, or later life, they do not arise in a vacuum, but in a psychosocial context. Many individual and cultural factors contribute to this context, and the purpose of this subject is to explore some of these influences, and how they interact with each other. Such an understanding provides the context for relating to clients as a whole person, rather than merely focusing on symptoms and diagnosis of disorders. Consideration of these factors is also crucial to the processes of formulation and engaging clients in therapy.
Topics covered include diagnoses as psychosocial phenomena, and factors in help-seeking and accessing the mental health system. The course considers aspects of diversity, such as physical health, cultural identity, gender identity, aging and family issues, especially as they relate to the presentation and treatment of psychological disorders. Ethical issues, theoretical perspectives, current clinical practice and evidence from the clinical research literature are emphasised.
Intended learning outcomes
Knowledge
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Critically examine factors relating to individual and cultural diversity, such as health status, gender, age and culture, including Australian indigenous cultures, and the presentation of psychological problems.
Skills
On completion of this subject students should demonstrate skills in:
- Appraisal of their own knowledge of diversity and reflect on its impact on their clinical effectiveness.
Application of Knowledge and Skills
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Integrate their understanding of the dimensions of diversity with their knowledge of psychopathology and diagnosis to formulate a rich conceptualisation of presenting issues.
- Apply knowledge of individual and cultural diversity to their understanding of the presentation of psychological disorders, for example by examining the relationships between culture and mental illness.
Generic skills
Improved problem solving skills
Improved written, oral and interpersonal communication skills
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
Enrolment in one of the following Psychology proessional training programs, 527CL, 527CN, 080CL, 080CN or MC-PSYCHCS
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Recommended background knowledge
Completion of undergraduate psychology studies to fourth-year (Honours) level.
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Assessment
Due to the impact of COVID-19, assessment may differ from that published in the Handbook. Students are reminded to check the subject assessment requirements published in the subject outline on the LMS
Description | Timing | Percentage |
---|---|---|
An in-class presentation of no more than 15 minutes
| From Week 2 to Week 11 | 20% |
A written case-based assignment
| Mid semester | 40% |
A written case-based assignment
| End of semester | 40% |
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Dates & times
- Semester 2
Principal coordinator Christina Bryant Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 1.5 hours per week for 12 weeks Total time commitment 85 hours Teaching period 3 August 2020 to 1 November 2020 Last self-enrol date 14 August 2020 Census date 21 September 2020 Last date to withdraw without fail 16 October 2020 Assessment period ends 27 November 2020 Semester 2 contact information
Time commitment details
85 hours
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
No prescribed text. A series of readings will be available at the beginning of semester.
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Last updated: 3 November 2022