SOCIETY, ILLNESS, & HEALTH (PY3069)

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This course examines health and illness in a social, cultural and historical context. The first part of the course focuses on physical or behavioural 'symptoms' without any apparent organic aetiology (e.g. sick-building syndrome), appearing in members of specific groups or localities (socio-genic illness). The second part of the course considers socio-cultural shaping and experience of other more prevalent disorders.

Code: 
PY3069
Name: 
SOCIETY, ILLNESS, & HEALTH
Discipline: 
PY (Psychology)
Type: 
Regular
Level: 
Undergraduate
Credits: 
4
Can be taken twice for credit?: 
No
Pre-requisites: 
College Level=Sophomore OR PY1000CCI
Co-requisites: 
None

Learning Outcomes

  1. In addition to reading assignments students are expected to compile a bibliography for their mini-monograph, and will learn how to develop strategies for bibliographical research
  2. Students should be able to analyse current media representations of dissociative identity disorders, depression, stress, phobias and conduct disorders
  3. Students should be able to develop their own points of view in ethical debates about health behaviour modification
  4. Students should understand the role played by patient advocacy groups in the fight for medical recognition of “emergent illnesses”
  5. Students will be able to historically situate and define the term “Culture Bound Syndrome”, as well as understand the debate about using this term in Psychiatry
  6. Students will learn about the use of historical archives in Psychology
  7. Students will learn how to write a mini-monograph on a possible occurrence of sociogenic illness (either a historical or a contemporary one), on an “emergent illness” or on media representation of mental illness
  8. understand the concepts of medicalization and healthicization and be able to formulate their own point of view concerning the pertinence of these concepts

Offering(s)

Term Code Name
Fall 2023 PY3069 SOCIETY, ILLNESS, & HEALTH

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