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PU5524: STRESS, PERSONALITY AND HEALTH (2019-2020)

Last modified: 18 Mar 2020 09:59


Course Overview

This course explores how stress and personality can affect our health by influencing how we view the world, how we react to situations and events (psychologically, physiologically and behaviourally) and our capacity to cope in difficult circumstances. We are all individuals who respond differently to the environment around us and these individual differences can influence our health, positively and negatively. Stress and other individual differences such as coping, social support and personality will be explored in relation to health and illness. Understanding the relationship between these factors can explain the psychological influences on health and identify key areas for intervention.

Course Details

Study Type Postgraduate Level 5
Session Second Sub Session Credit Points 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits)
Campus Aberdeen Sustained Study No
Co-ordinators
  • Dr Clare Cooper
  • Lecturer Daniel Powell

What courses & programmes must have been taken before this course?

  • MSc Health Psychology (Studied)
  • Any Postgraduate Programme (Studied)

What other courses must be taken with this course?

None.

What courses cannot be taken with this course?

None.

Are there a limited number of places available?

No

Course Description

This course aims to provide you with the knowledge and skills to understand the psychological and individual factors influencing health and specifically by the end of the course you should be able to:

  • Critically evaluate the key theoretical models of stress and personality, and to apply these models to research problems in the context of health
  • Discuss the psychological processes that explain how individual difference factors influence health beliefs and behaviours
  • Describe the physiological and psychological determinants/consequences of stress and to reflect on how best to operationalize the concept of ‘stress’ in a variety of contexts
  • Select measures of the psychological and physiological indicators of stress that are appropriate for use in controlled laboratory setting and in ambulatory real word settings
  • Interpret complex psychophysiological data
  • Apply theory to the design of context-appropriate stress management interventions

Topics covered by the course include:

  • Theoretical models of stress
  • Measurement of stress
  • Models of coping and stress management
  • Psychoneuroimmunology
  • Models and theories of personality
  • The role of personality in health and illness
  • Emotion in health
  • Individual differences in health, health behaviour, illness perceptions and health beliefs

Contact Teaching Time

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

Teaching Breakdown

More Information about Week Numbers


Details, including assessments, may be subject to change until 31 August 2023 for 1st half-session courses and 22 December 2023 for 2nd half-session courses.

Summative Assessments

Exam

Assessment Type Summative Weighting 60
Assessment Weeks Feedback Weeks

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Learning Outcomes
Knowledge LevelThinking SkillOutcome
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Continuous assessment

Assessment Type Summative Weighting 40
Assessment Weeks Feedback Weeks

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Learning Outcomes
Knowledge LevelThinking SkillOutcome
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Formative Assessment

There are no assessments for this course.

Course Learning Outcomes

Knowledge LevelThinking SkillOutcome
Sorry, we don't have this information available just now. Please check the course guide on MyAberdeen or with the Course Coordinator

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