Academic Development in Applied Psychology
| Module title | Academic Development in Applied Psychology |
|---|---|
| Module code | PSYM241Z |
| Academic year | 2025/6 |
| Credits | 30 |
| Module staff |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 48 |
|---|
Module description
This module comprises the second part of the academic suite of modules required in applied psychology for the Professional Doctorates offered by The University of Exeter (including the DClinPsy and DForenPsy). PSYM243Z Academic Skills in Applied Psychology is a pre-requisite for this module.
The module has been benchmarked against professional standards for professional doctorates approved by the British Psychological Society, for training programmes including doctorates in Clinical Psychology and Forensic Psychology. Alongside the Research and Applied/Clinical modules, the Academic modules form the basis of training in the knowledge, skills, values and competences required to practise as doctoral level clinical professionals, and complies with HCPC and University Regulations for PGR Programmes - see Chapter 10 of the Postgraduate Research Handbook https://www.exeter.ac.uk/about/governance/tqa/pgr/
Module aims - intentions of the module
The module aims to develop awareness of standards in equality, equity, anti-discrimination and inclusion. Based on these principles it aims to develop trainees understanding of the main elements of theory, evidence-base and practice pertaining to core knowledge, skills, values and competence to draw upon for the applied psychologist working with clients across the life span with special reference to approaches: systemic, cognitive analytic therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy and neuropsychology. These approaches inform learning and practice with adult, older adult, children, people with intellectual disabilities, public health approaches, and clients in health settings.
Building on the Academic Skills in Applied Psychology module from, indicative content may include:
- Value driven commitment to reducing psychological distress and enhancing and promoting psychological wellbeing through the systematic application of knowledge derived from psychological theory and evidence.
- Psychological assessment, formulation, interventions and communication with colleagues.
- Knowledge and understanding related to psychological theory and evidence related to specific client groups.
- Working with people from diverse backgrounds.
- Clinical and research skills based on a reflective scientist practitioner model that incorporates a cycle of assessment, formulation, intervention and evaluation and that draws from across theory and therapy evidence bases as appropriate.
- Skills to work with voluntary, self help, charity/third sector and other services.
- Skills to work indirectly with clients.
- Skills and knowledge to evaluate interventions.
- Professional and ethical base.
- Managing personal learning agenda and self care.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Describe the theoretical, empirical and practical basis for the core competencies of an applied psychologist: establishing relationships; assessment; formulation; intervention; evaluation to an excellent standard using specific intervention models such as CBT.
- 2. Assess, review, critically evaluate (including the effects of culture and development of knowledge), synthesise and communicate empirical and theoretical knowledge in applied psychology to an excellent standard.
- 3. Autonomously integrate and implement psychological evidence and theory in real world settings (considering complex and unpredictable contexts and recognising complexities/deficiencies and/or contradictions in knowledge) to an excellent standard.
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 4. Show respect, understand and work collaboratively with the knowledge and theories held by clients, carers or other partners, clinicians and commissioners from a diverse range of backgrounds and other professional groups to an excellent standard.
- 5. Understand the major bio-psycho-social factors associated with psychological well-being, distress and disorder across the life span, with special reference to children, adolescents and families, people with learning disability, adults, older adults and people challenged by a variety of issues including health difficulties, physical and sensory disabilities, and addictions, to an excellent level.
- 6. Work with a range of conceptual frameworks for understanding psychological well-being, distress and disorder across the life span (including the life span development model, scientist and reflective practitioner models, medical model, racial trauma, climate change, contextual understandings and client perspectives), demonstrating an excellent standard.
- 7. Recognise and challenge the structural factors influencing psychological well-being and distress, with special reference to gender, race, culture, social class, poverty, sexual orientation, spirituality and disability to an excellent standard.
- 8. Demonstrate understanding of the importance of partnership working in mental health practice, respecting diversity, practising ethically, challenging inequality, promoting recovery, identifying needs and strengths, providing service user centred care, making a difference, promoting safety and positive risk taking, personal development and learning to an excellent standard.
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 9. Recognise and work within the limits of own professional competence to an excellent standard, and accept high levels of responsibility for oneself and others.
- 10. Interrogate all areas of applied psychological practice through lenses of equality, equity, anti-discrimination and inclusion, demonstrating ability to lead challenge and reform where appropriate at an excellent standard.
- 11. Demonstrate competent consultancy or training skills on psychological issues to other professional groups to an excellent standard.
- 12. Work from a professional and ethical value base, to recognise and analyse professional and ethical dilemmas and work with others to formulate solutions in accordance with professional guidelines; Be familiar with and endorse relevant professional/organizational codes of practice (e.g. the NHS Constitution principles, HCPC and BPS Codes of Ethics and Conduct) to an excellent standard.
Syllabus plan
This module continues with the elements described in the Academic Skills in Applied Psychology module, but goes into them in more detail as trainees gain more experience and confidence across the Programme. Core skills include therapeutic relationships, assessment, formulation, intervention and evaluation – working with individuals, families and communities. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy is taught to all, and other psychotherapeutic approaches are also taught in less intensive ways.
The syllabus is comprised of core themes all of which use a pedagogic approach informed by anti-racism.
Indicative themes are:
- Life-span development framework: The development model as a framework for the curriculum; development and challenges in childhood; development and challenges in adulthood; development and challenges in older age.
- Specific challenges through the life span: Bereavement and loss; abuse; learning disabilities; physical and neuropsychological disabilities; health and illness; mental health and the law; addictions.
- Responding to challenges: Psychological approaches: Systemic approaches; Cognitive Behavioural approaches; Cognitive Analytic approaches.
- Professional Development: Core therapeutic competencies (therapeutic relationships, formulation, assessment, intervention, evaluation).
- Responding to public health challenges including climate change, pandemics, the impact of poverty.
The core themes are divided into specific strands, which may be delivered in accordance with the life-span model.
Training focuses on building from PSYM243Z Academic Skills in Applied Psychology
In turn this prepares students for their specialty specific (e.g. Clinical or Forensic) academic modules in subsequent years where trainees will have the opportunity to consolidate their learning and obtain specialist skills and knowledge.
At the end of training (all academic modules: Academic Skills in Applied Psychology, Academic Development in Applied Psychology and specialty specific Academic Skills, Academic Development and Academic Mastery), trainees are able to draw on and utilize a range of different therapy models and evidence-based interventions to meet the needs and choices of the organisations in which they work and the clients they serve.
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 200 | 100 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching activities | 200 | Lectures, practical classes and problem based learning |
| Guided independent study | 100 | Reading and web-based activity. Preparation for presentations. |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Problem Based Learning Presentation or Plan for case study/ clinical practice report | Approx. 30 minutes or Approx. 1000 words | 1-12 | Group presentation |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Case study/ Clinical practice report | 100 | 4,000-5,000 words | 1-12 | Written |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4000-5000 word Case study/ Clinical practice report | Where the student has received minor amendments, or major i or major ii, reassessment is of the same work to check recommended changes are made. Where the student receives Major iii the student has to resubmit a new piece of work of the same type. | 1-12 | 4 weeks for minor corrections 8 weeks for major corrections |
Re-assessment notes
Each summative assessment needs to be passed. Details of the marking scheme can be found at Chapter 10 of the Postgraduate Research Handbook https://www.exeter.ac.uk/about/governance/tqa/pgr/ In order to pass the programme, the whole module must be passed. See also, https://www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/specificsites/tqa/pgr/PGR_Handbook_Chapter_10_Annex_1_Flowchart_of_Professional_Doctorate_Assessment_Process_AUG24.pdf
For those students with Individual Learning plans, the following alternative assessments are also considered on an individual basis depending on need:
|
Category |
Barrier to learning |
Alternative 1 |
Alternative 2 |
|
Problem Based Learning Presentation |
Verbal presentation in front of group – difficult with anxiety |
Record contribution to presentation prepared in advance and shared during the presentation |
Whole group to present separately to the assessor |
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Suggested reading:
American Psychological Association (2012). APA style guide to electronic references. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association
Asmundson, G. (ed). (2020). Comprehensive Clinical Psychology (2nd Edition). New York: Elsevier.
Beck, A. T., Davis, D. D., & Freeman, A. (Eds.). (2015) Cognitive therapy of personality disorders. Guilford Publications
Beck, J. S. (2021). Cognitive therapy: Basics and beyond (3rd Edition). The Guilford Press.
British Psychological Society (2006). Good practice guidelines for UK clinical psychology training providers: training and consolidation of clinical practice in relation to older people. Leicester: BPS
British Psychological Society (2009). Good practice guidelines for UK clinical psychology training providers: training and consolidation of clinical practice in clinical health psychology. Leicester: BPS
British Psychological Society (2019). Standards for the accreditation of doctoral programmes in clinical psychology. Leciester: BPS
British Psychological Society (2021). Training and consolidation of clinical practice in relation to adults with intellectual disabilities. Leicester: BPS
Butler, C. (2009). Sexual and gender minority therapy and systemic practice. Journal of Family Therapy, 31, 338-358
Carr, A. (2015). The Handbook
of Child and Adolescent Clinical Psychology A Contextual Approach. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
Carr, A., & McNulty, M. (2016). The handbook of adult clinical psychology : an evidence-based practice approach. London; New York: Routledge.
Coetzer, R., & Balchin, R. (2014). Working with Brain Injury A primer for psychologists working in under-resourced settings. Hoboken: Psychology Press, a Taylor and Francis Group.
Dallos, R. & Draper, R. (2000). An introduction to Family Therapy: systemic theory and practice (3rd ed). Maidenhead: Open University Press
Field, A. P. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed.). London: Sage.
Hagenaars, P., Plavsic, M., Sveaass, N., Wagner, U., & Wainwright, T. (Eds.). (2020). Human Rights Education For Psychologists. London:Routledge
Haslam, S. A., Reicher, S. D., & Platow, M. J. (2020). The new psychology of leadership: Identity, influence and power (second edition). Psychology Press.
Israelashvili, M. R. J. L. (2017). The Cambridge handbook of international prevention science. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Johnstone, L., & Dallos, R. (2014). Formulation in Psychology and Psychotherapy (2nd ed.). Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
Kazdin, A. E. (2016). Research design in clinical psychology (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Laidlaw, K. (2016). CBT for older people : an introduction. Wokingham: Sage
Layard, R., & Clark, D. (2015). Thrive : the power of evidence-based psychological therapies. Penguin
Lezak, M., Howieson, E., & Bigler, D. (2012). Neuropsychological assessment (5th Edition). Oxford: Oxford university press.
Lloyd, J. and Pollard, R. (2019). (Eds) Cognitive Analytic Therapy and the Politics of Mental Health. London, Routledge
McIntosh, M., Nicholas, H., & Huq, A. H. (2019). Leadership and diversity in psychology : moving beyond the limits. Routledge.
Melville, F. & O’Brien, J. (2017). Working with refugees: a CAT-based Relational Perspective. International Journal of CAT and Relational Mental Health, 1, 54-70
NHS (2019). The NHS Long Term Plan. https://www.longtermplan.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/nhs-long-term-plan-version-1.2.pdf
Onyett, S. (2012). 'Leadership challenges for clinical psychology' - challenge or opportunity. Clinical Psychology Forum, 238, 10 – 17
Pachana, N. & Laidlaw, K. (eds.) (2014) The Oxford Handbook of ClinicalGeropsychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Rathod, S. (2015). Cultural Adaptation of CBT for serious mental illness. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell
Riemer, M., Reich. S.M., Scotney, D.E., Nelson, G. & Prilleltenskey, I. (2020) Community Psychology: In pursuit of liberation and well-being. Bloomsbury: Red Globe Press
Rubin, N., S., & Flores, R. L. (Eds.). (2020). The Cambridge Handbook of Psychology and Human Rights: download from Uni. Cambridge University Press
Tarrier, N., & Johnson, J. (Eds.). (2015). Case formulation in cognitive behaviour therapy: The treatment of challenging and complex cases. Routledge
Wenzel, A. (ed.) (2020).The American Psychological Association’s Handbook of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Washington DC. APA.
Westbrook, D. Kennerley, H. Kirk, J. (2011). An Introduction to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy: Skills and Applications. London: Sage
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
British Psychological Society:
- Electronic records guidance (2019)
- Record Keeping: Guidance on Good Practice, (2013)
- Code of Human Research Ethics (2021)
- Code of Ethics and Conduct. (2018)
- Conducting research with human participants during Covid-19 (2020)
- Division of Clinical Psychology: Policy on supervision (2014)
- Ethics guidelines for internet-mediated research (2021)
- Standards for the accreditation of Doctoral Programmes in Clinical Psychology (2019)
- Practice Guidelines (2017)
Health and Care Professions Council:
- Standards of Education and Training guidance (2017)
- Practitioner psychologists (2018)
- Standards of conduct, performance and Ethics (2018)
- Guidance on conduct and ethics for students (2016)
Indicative learning resources - Other resources
Other resources are available on ELE2 – https://ele.exeter.ac.uk
| Credit value | 30 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 15 |
| Module pre-requisites | PSYM243Z Academic Skills in Applied Psychology |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 7 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 01/03/2024 |
| Last revision date | 19/02/2025 |
