History & Philosophy of Psychiatry (PSYT90088)
Graduate courseworkPoints: 6.25On Campus (Parkville) and Online
About this subject
Contact information
May
Email: continuing-education@unimelb.edu.au
Phone: + 61 3 8344 0149
Contact hours: https://unimelb.edu.au/professional-development/contact-us
Overview
| Availability | May - On Campus May - Online |
|---|---|
| Fees | Look up fees |
Philosophical and ethical issues pervade psychiatric thinking and everyday practice, as well as mental health policy. Key questions concern:
- the nature of mental health and illness, which in turn leads to questions about the nature of mind, brain and their connections (this takes in philosophy of mind and philosophical approaches to descriptive psychopathology)
- the causation, prevention and treatment of mental illness - types of psychological and neurobiological forms of thinking about these; issues raised by the rapid developments in neuroscience, including the emergence of neuroethics
- the ethics of psychiatric work, including confidentiality and involuntary treatment; codes of ethics
- the ethics of psychiatric care – resource allocation, mental health policy
- the ethics of psychiatric relations with business, notably the pharmaceutical industry
- the ethics of international mental health and transcultural psychiatric work in an era of globalisation
- psychiatry and science: is psychiatry a form of science? And, if so, in what ways, is psychiatry like other sciences, in what ways different?
The unit aims to provide an overview of this field, oriented particularly to the needs of psychiatrists- in-training, undertaking the training programme of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP), but the content will be relevant and of interest to non-trainee and non-medical participants involved in the mental health sector. The subject title includes the word ‘history’ as, wherever possible, the content will be taught with an historical emphasis, using case studies from the history of psychiatry (as well as from the present) to complement the more philosophical teaching.
A strong theme in the course will be the many implications of neuroscience, including social neuroscience, for psychiatry, including implications for concepts of self and human identity, for psychological enhancement, for surveillance and ‘mind-reading’ and for prediction and management of socially undesired traits. An emerging issue is the potential use of digital media and technologies (the web, apps), employing social neuroscience techniques in psychiatric care, eg, programs that assess facial movement and voice features to diagnose depression. The concept of ‘neurodiversity’ will be discussed as will some attempted integrations of psychological and neurobiological ways of thinking, such as neuropsychoanalysis.
An important topic will be the ethical and effective communication of psychiatric science to patients and to the general community.
Intended learning outcomes
On completion of this unit students will be able to:
- Identify philosophical questions relevant to a diverse range of psychiatric scenarios, i.e. they will be able to see the relevance of philosophical inquiry and concepts to those scenarios.
- Formulate questions and issues in a philosophical way, i.e. they will be able to mobilise some core concepts from the course to begin their own inquiry into those scenarios
- Effectively locate resources relevant to philosophical thinking about a range of psychiatric scenarios, i.e. relevant people (philosophers, ethicists, social scientists), or publications and other scholarly media.
Generic skills
On successful completion of the unit the student will have acquired the capacity to:
1. Describe basic concepts of main present-day theories of mind/brain relations
2. Demonstrate basic knowledge of the field of descriptive psychopathology and its history, including its linkages to various schools of philosophy and psychology, such as faculty psychology, associationism, and cognitive neuroscience
3. Discuss philosophical concepts of value and ethics and their relevance to aspects of psychiatry, including clinical work, mental health services and policy and communication with the general community
4. Demonstrate knowledge of the potential implications of neuroscience for psychiatry, including ideas about what – if anything – is philosophically different, or challenging, about current developments
5. Discuss basic concepts about the nature of science and how such concepts apply to the field of psychiatry.
Last updated: 4 March 2025
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
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: 4 March 2025
Assessment
| Description | Timing | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
Class participation | Throughout the teaching period | 10% |
Oral presentation | During the teaching period | 30% |
Written essay, due within 3 weeks of teaching period end date
| 3 Weeks after the end of teaching | 60% |
| Hurdle requirement: Attendance: 75% of sessions (for face-to-face students) OR 75% completion of online modules (for online students) | Throughout the teaching period | N/A |
Last updated: 4 March 2025
Dates & times
- May - On Campus
- May - Online
Principal coordinator Mahesh Jayaram Mode of delivery Online Contact hours 21 Total time commitment 85 hours Pre teaching start date 28 April 2025 Pre teaching requirements During the pre-teaching period, students should familiarise themselves with the online platform and may like to take the opportunity to read through preliminary information about the subject and the services and support that is available to them. Students are encouraged to use this time to also introduce themselves to peers and teaching staff and to learn about those they will be studying with throughout the term. Teaching period 5 May 2025 to 13 June 2025 Last self-enrol date 29 April 2025 Census date 16 May 2025 Last date to withdraw without fail 20 June 2025 Assessment period ends 18 July 2025 May contact information
Email: continuing-education@unimelb.edu.au
Phone: + 61 3 8344 0149
Contact hours: https://unimelb.edu.au/professional-development/contact-us
Time commitment details
85 hours
What do these dates mean
Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:
- Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
- And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
- Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.
Last updated: 4 March 2025
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
- Graham G (2013) ‘The Disordered Mind: An Introduction to Philosophy of Mind and Mental Illness.’ Routledge
- Bloch S, Green S (2009) ‘Psychiatric Ethics.’ Oxford University Press
Recommended texts and other resources
- Nikolas Rose, Joelle M. Abi-Rached (2013) ‘Neuro: The New Brain Sciences and the Management of the Mind.’ Princeton University Press
- Ghaemi, SN (2003) ‘The concepts of psychiatry’. Johns Hopkins University Press
- Fulford KWM, Thronton T, Graham G (eds) (2006) ‘Oxford textbook of philosophy and psychiatry’. Oxford University Press
- Broome MR, Bortolotti L (eds) (2009) ‘Psychiatry as cognitive neuroscience: philosophical perspectives’ Oxford University Press
- Choudhury S, Slaby J (eds) (2012) ‘Critical neuroscience: a handbook of the social and cultural contexts of neuroscience’ Wiley-Blackwell
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Master of Psychiatry Course Master of Psychiatry - Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Please note Single Subject Studies via Community Access Program is not available to student visa holders or applicants
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
Additional information for this subject
Students wishing to take this subject under Community Access must meet the course entry requirements to be eligible.
Last updated: 4 March 2025