Course content

This is an intermediate (level II) course in social, community, and cultural psychology. This course will focus on selected topics such as attitude formation and change, social inferences, decisions and choices, sense of community, belonging, social exclusion, intercultural and intergroup relations, racism, xenophobia and discrimination as well as globalization and diversity, and language as a social tool. The course will develop students’ understanding about how mental health and psychosocial well-being varies across groups and cultures, and the applicability of social and community psychological theory across cultures.

Learning outcome

Knowledge:

• The student has in-depth theoretical, empirical, and applied knowledge of some of the main topics in social, community, and cultural psychology.
• The student has in-depth knowledge on the use of methods and data sources in the above three fields.
• The student has broad knowledge of how mental health and psychosocial processes can vary within and between societies and cultures.
• The student has broad knowledge on how language and culture affect communication, interaction, and cooperation
• Students understand the impact, challenges, and opportunities of globalization in shaping intercultural societies
• Students know key strategies in community and social intervention to promote psychosocial mental-health and wellbeing.

Skills:

• The student can analyze and reflect critically on theories, methods, and empirical findings from social-, community-, and cultural psychology
• The student can communicate about central topics within the three fields. Students show awareness of how cultural and social differences are connected to differences in mental health and psychosocial processes and can analyze these differences.
• The student can compare theories and approaches in the above three fields and can identify differences and similarities in their emphasis
• Students can analyze the multiple systems where individuals and communities are embedded.
• Students show awareness of the relevance of communities, diversity, intercultural relations, processes of acculturation, and migration in developing psycho-social interventions
• The student has knowledge of the importance of cultural and language background for disease

General competence:

• The student can apply knowledge from social-, community-, and cultural psychology to contribute to original thinking and problem solving
• The student understands how individuals’ thinking and actions are shaped by the time, place and societies in which they live, but also how people can shape their context through their own individual and collective actions.
• The student can communicate and disseminate knowledge from the above three fields to other disciplines, fellow students, specialists, and to the general public.
• Students acknowledge diversity in their professional work (i.e., age, gender, language, culture, and socioeconomic background), and act and communicate respectfully regarding people’s integrity, dignity, and autonomy.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures and seminars.

Specific conditions

Recommended previous knowledge

None

Required previous knowledge

PSY1004, PSY1014, PSY1124, PSY1127, PSYPRO4114, PSYK4127 or equivalent.

Credit reductions