Block 1, 2023 Ipswich On-campus | |
Units : | 1 |
School or Department : | School of Psychology and Wellbeing |
Grading basis : | Graded |
Course fee schedule : | /current-students/administration/fees/fee-schedules |
Staffing
Course Coordinator:
Requisites
Pre-requisite: Students must be enrolled in one of the following Programs: MCPS or MCPA
Overview
The practitioner addressing psychological problems requires a depth of understanding of therapeutic perspectives and methods demonstrated to be effective within complex mental health challenges. Students will acquire knowledge and skills within current therapeutic systems that address the emotional distress and specific daily functioning challenges clients face. Students' competencies to plan and implement interventions will include attention to the particular demands on developing and maintaining therapeutic alliance with personal insight based on reflective practice.
This course addresses principles and practice of a range of psychological therapies including dialectical behaviour therapy, schema therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, animal-assisted therapy and interpersonal therapy, for complex mental health issues across the lifespan. The course material is presented through personal critical reflection, discussion and debate in class, and through experiential skill development in workshops/residential school. The knowledge acquired will be assessed through case formulation and treatment planning for the same client using two different therapy systems. Attendance at the on-campus workshops/residential school is mandatory. Dates of the workshops/residential schools will be according to the 'Workshop Schedule' which will be emailed to students at the outset of the program.
Course learning outcomes
On completion of this course students should be able to:
- apply knowledge and skills for covered therapeutic modalities to Clinical Psychology practice.
- develop and maintain a working alliance characterised by compassion and empathy-based intervention frameworks, with insight regarding how to therapeutically use their relationship with the client and an understanding of potential transference and countertransference;
- determine the appropriate therapeutic focus and strategy for a client based on the assessment of the presenting problem, diagnosis, and the cognitive capacity and emotional strength to engage;
- adopt the appropriate therapy within the context of consensual problem definition and goal-setting;
- design, implement and evaluate individual interventions with the ability to flexibly renegotiate and redesign such interventions as needed based on session-by-session progress evaluations;
- proficiently communication and engaging with clients and community to understand and attend to the needs of clients.
Topics
Description | Weighting(%) | |
---|---|---|
1. | Schema Therapy | 20.00 |
2. | Dialectical Behaviour Therapy | 20.00 |
3. | Acceptance and Commitment Therapy | 20.00 |
4. | Interpersonal Psychotherapy | 20.00 |
5. | Animal-assisted Therapy | 10.00 |
6. | Therapeutic relationship challenges with complex clientele | 10.00 |
Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed
(Note: This is designed as a client self help work book. Takes you through the ACT methods.)
(Note that this is for the skills training component only. Purchase also gets access to online reproducible teaching notes and handouts.)
Student workload expectations
To do well in this subject, students are expected to commit approximately 10 hours per week including class contact hours, independent study, and all assessment tasks. If you are undertaking additional activities, which may include placements and residential schools, the weekly workload hours may vary.
Assessment details
Description | Group Assessment |
Weighting (%) | Course learning outcomes |
---|---|---|---|
Case Study 1 | No | 50 | 1,2,3,4,5,6 |
Case Study 2 | No | 50 | 1,2,3,4,5,6 |