Psychology Unit Catalogue

BIOL0011: The biosphere
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
Aims: To provide a global perspective of the communities and ecosystems of the world and the role of these systems in the flow of energy and matter. After taking this course the student should be able to:
* identify the main flows of energy through the biosphere
* understand how minerals cycle in the environment and how soils form
* appreciate the main features of aquatic environments and terrestrial biomes
* have an awareness of the effects that humans have on the environment
Content:
The flow of energy through the biosphere; the global biogeochemical cycles; soils and aquatic environments; the major terrestrial biomes(tundra, northern coniferous forests, temperate deciduous forests, temperate grasslands, and tropical forests). The impact of humankind on the environment, with particular emphasis on pollution.

BIOL0012: Ecology & evolution
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
Aims: To provide a broad introduction to key concepts in ecology and evolution. To approach issues in ecology and evolution in a rigorous, cohesive way that will provide the students with a conceptual framework that will help them to examine other areas of biology in a fuller context of evolution and ecology. To provide a firm foundation for more detailed study within the specific fields of evolution and ecology later in their course. It aims to introduce students to the unique position of ecology and evolution in the biological sciences; why these disciplines pose unusual challenges such as huge time scales and an attendant paucity of experimental information; why ecology and evolution tend to be analytical rather than experimental sciences; reasons why these are theory driven sciences and the special role of mathematical models in these disciplines. After taking this course the student should be able to:
*outline certain key principles in evolution and ecology
*demonstrate an understanding of the unique position of evolution and ecology in the biological sciences
*demonstrate an understanding of the logic of the arguments used in the construction of simple mathematical models for population growth, competition and predator prey relationships
*synthesise evidence of many kinds that animal, fungal and plant communities have evolved in highly structured ways
*show some appreciation of the role of ecological and evolutionary thinking in areas such as conservation and biodiversity
*have some basics skill in obtaining, processing and evaluating ecological data in laboratory and field based practicals.
Content:
Key concepts in evolution, including the nature of evolutionary selection, including kin-selection, sexual selection and natural selection. Dynamics of ecological populations including field and laboratory examples and mathematical models. Population growth, intraspecifc and interspecific competition and predator/prey relationships. The structure and development of plant, animal and fungal communities are also examined and evidence is described from studies of the limits of similarity, island biogeography and food webs.

BIOL0040: Concepts in ecology & evolution
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX100
Requisites: Pre BIOL0012
Aims & learning objectives:
Aims: To develop an understanding of a) the nature of selection; b) the role of self-organisation in evolution; c) population dynamics and conservation; d) behavioural ecology and optimal foraging theory; e) the contribution of Darwin to the development of modern evolutionary theory. After taking this course the student should be able to:
* utilise concepts from natural selection theory, kin selection theory, optimisation theory, behavioural ecology, community biology, and ecological genetics in understanding ecological and evolutionary issues
* understand the role of self-organisation in social insects.
* offer a critique of the first edition of Darwin's 'The Origin of Species' and understand how key issues raised by Darwin as problems for his theory have been resolved.
Content:
The role of selection in evolution; agents of selection; units of selection; selection and adaptation; selection and fitness; natural selection and kin selection; genetic drift. Conservation and habitat fragmentation; exploiter mediated co-existence. Optimality in ecology and evolution; optimal foraging theory; self organisation; division of labour and the super-organism; battle strategies in social insects. Students are also requested to read 'The Origin of Species' and to discuss it in reading groups.

BIOL0041: Spring field course
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre BIOL0012
Aims & learning objectives:
Aims: To introduce the student to natural habitats in ways that enable the students to recognise patterns of distribution and behaviour of organisms and to question the basis of these patterns and behaviours. To introduce the student to the use of appropriate sampling patterns, experimental design, data gathering and statistical analysis. After taking the course the student should be able to:
*appreciate how aspects of behavioural ecology and of community structure can be investigated
*understand how these behaviours and structure may have arisen and how they are maintained
*design and perform a short field-based investigation; analyse and graphically present data
*prepare a written report of field-based investigations.
Content:
Visit to ecosystem types of varying complexity and subject to different kinds of selection process, such as rocky shore, sand dune, coastal grassland, salt marsh, woodland, moorland and fresh water. Investigation of components of these ecosystem types including spatial distribution, size and age distributions, reproduction and behaviour. Each student designs and carries out a half-day and a two-day field-based investigation; a preliminary report of the two-day investigation is presented as a short talk on the last day of the field trip; the data from the investigations are analysed and graphically presented using University computing facilities after the field trip. Students are required to make a financial contribution to the field course (currently £95)

BIOL0072: Biology as a world view
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX80 ES20
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
Aims: To develop an understanding of the history of biological thought in western culture. To develop an understanding of the extent to which the biological world view reflects and shapes the broader western world view. To provide an introduction to debates conducted within the philosophy of science about the potential of science to obtain an accurate picture of reality; this debate is illustrated with a case study which looks at philosophical and biological issues of the mind-brain problem. After taking this course the student should be able to:
*discuss the development of biological thought in ancient Greece, in medieval Europe and between the onset of the Scientific Revolution and the present
*debate problems associated with scientific methodology and discuss the implications for the biological world view of these problems.
Content:
Views of nature in ancient Greece, from presocratic philosophers to Plato, Aristotle and the neoplatonists, and in Europe from the medieval period to the present. Topics include: the nature of reality; what exists and why; the relationship between individuals, universals and classification. A critique of science which will include the following issues: how science is possible; how science identifies areas for study; the scientific approach, including the role of inductive and deductive reasoning, theory-ladeness and theory choice.

BIOL0108: Life, environment and people

ECOI0023: Social change and development
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre ECOI0077
Aims & learning objectives:
Aim: To introduce students to some of the key concepts and methods used in the social analysis of change and international development, grounding theoretical exploration in practical approaches to particular issues. Learning objectives: Students should learn how the key concerns of sociology (social structure and social relations) and social anthropology (culture) can be used to extend understanding of the process involved in social change and international development. By the end of this course unit students should be equipped critically to discuss the concepts and practice of social change drawing on the analytical traditions of sociology and social anthropology and the experience of a range of contexts in Africa, Asia and Latin America. This course unit builds on the foundations laid in ECOI0077 Introduction to International Development. It focuses on development as something that happens: social change. This complements ECOI0043 Governance and the Policy Process in Developing Countries, which considers development as something which is done: policy and programme intervention.
Content:
Social change and development as essentially contested: both as concepts and as forms of practice. A way of ordering the world by contrasts: in time - tradition/modernity; and space - first/third world; and in time as space - modern=western. Models of social change and the implication of sociology and anthropology in these. Interrogating notions of identity, tradition and modernity: in colonialism; in notions of city and countryside; poverty and progress; health and reasoning; cultures of production and exchange. The dynamics of social change: in divisions of labour and within households. Issues around agency, consciousness and social/political action. The implications of globalization and the post-colonial order. Key text: Roger Keesing,'Cultural Anthropology: A Contemporary Perspective'. Nancy Scheper-Hughes, 'Death Without Weeping: The Violence of Everday Life in Urban Brazil'.

ECOI0077: Introduction to international development
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The aim of the Unit is to introduce students to the major issues in international development. The learning objectives are that students should: 1. Learn to 'think sociologically' about international development issues 2. Have some knowledge of the development of capitalism and the nation-state system and the ways in which these have interacted to produce problems of poverty, international debt and violence 3. Appreciate the different contributions to understanding development made by different social science disciplines 4. Understand the ideological arguments between the major development paradigms.
Content:
From mercantilism to globalisation; the current structure of the world economy and polity; the diversity of poor country trajectories; disciplinary approaches to international development; development paradigms; wealth and poverty; trade, debt and the international financial institutions; violence; gender relations; the environment; development and the development industry. Key texts: Peter Preston,'Development Theory'. Diana Hunt,'Economic Theories of Development'. Ankie Hoogvelt,'Globalisation and the Postcolonial World'. Katy Gardner & David Lewis,'Anthropology, Development and the Post-modern Challenge'. Andrew Boyd,'An Atlas of World Affairs'.

ESML0001: French written & spoken language 1A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To stimulate the production of authentic and accurate written and spoken French; to provide a grounding in French grammatical and syntactic structures; to revise, broaden and consolidate grasp of lexis and grammatical structures; to extend awareness of style and linguistic register; to develop skills in translation from French into English; to practise receptive and communicative skills.
Content:
(a) Translation: varieties of register, written translation from French into English, introduction to essay writing. (b) Grammar/creative writing: introduction to résumé, systematic practical grammar course, introduction to CALL multimedia, development of lexis. (c) Spoken Language: comprehension, text recreation, controlled oral production, course-related conversation sessions.

ESML0002: French written & spoken language 1B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0001
Aims & learning objectives:
To stimulate the production of authentic and accurate written and spoken French; to provide a grounding in French grammatical and syntactic structures; to revise, broaden and consolidate grasp of lexis and grammatical structures; to develop awareness of style and linguistic register; to develop skills in translation from French into English; to practise receptive and communicative skills.
Content:
(a) Translation: varieties of register, written translation from French into English, introduction to essay writing, dictée. (b) Grammar/creative writing: introduction to résuméé, systematic practical grammar course, development of lexis, prose translation, text comparison. (c) Spoken Language: comprehension, text recreation, controlled oral production, course-related conversation sessions.

ESML0007: French written & spoken language 2A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0002
Aims & learning objectives:
To continue the production of authentic and accurate written and spoken French; to provide further work in French grammatical and syntactic structures; to revise, broaden and consolidate grasp of lexis and grammatical structures; to extend awareness of style and linguistic register; to develop skills in translation from French into English; to practise receptive and communicative skills.
Content:
(a) Translation: varieties of register, written translation from French into English, extempore translation, cloze tests. (b) Grammar/creative writing: introduction to guided essay, systematic practical grammar course, development of lexis. (c) Spoken Language: comprehension, text recreation, controlled oral production, course-related conversation sessions.

ESML0008: French written & spoken language 2B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX54 CW20 OR26
Requisites: Pre ESML0007
Aims & learning objectives:
To continue the production of authentic and accurate written and spoken French; to provide further work in French grammatical and syntactic structures; to revise, broaden and consolidate grasp of lexis and grammatical structures; to extend awareness of style and linguistic register; to develop skills in translation from French into English; to practise receptive and communicative skills.
Content:
(a) Translation: varieties of register, written translation from French into English, extempore translation, cloze tests, dictée. (b) Grammar/creative writing: introduction to guided essay, systematic practical grammar course, development of lexis, text comparison. (c) Spoken Language: comprehension, text recreation, controlled oral production, course-related conversation sessions.

ESML0013: French written & spoken language 4A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0008
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop advanced skills in the comprehension and production of written French; To provide a structured but informal context for the development of a variety of advanced oral skills. To exploit competence in written and oral French developed during the first two years of the course and, where appropriate, during the third year placement in France (or equivalent).
Content:
Written Language: translation from French into English; summarization and re-writing (in French); language commentary (in French); analysis of style and register (contemporary social, political, literary). Spoken Language: explication and debate, through lector-led group discussion and individual presentation. Material covers a wide range of political, social, cultural subjects, within the context of current French concern.

ESML0014: French written & spoken language 4B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX38 CW17 OR27 OT18
Requisites: Pre ESML0013
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop advanced skills in the comprehension and production of written French. To provide a structured but informal context for the development of a variety of advanced oral skills. To exploit competence in written and oral French developed during the first two years of the course and, where, appropriate, during the third year placement in France (or equivalent). By the end of the unit, students should be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with native speakers of French on social, political and cultural topics, orally and in writing in a broad range of appropriate registers and in both professional and social contexts.
Content:
Written Language: translation from French into English; summarization and re-writing (in French); language commentary (in French); analysis of style and register (contemporary social, political, literary). Spoken Language: explication and debate, through lector-led group discussion and individual presentation, focusing on and in preparation for the requirements of the final oral examination. Material covers a wide range of political, social, cultural subjects, within the context of current French concern.

ESML0030: German written & spoken language 1A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The unit pursues a dual aim. (1) To refresh and consolidate students knowledge and understanding of grammatical structures; to enable them to apply the acquired skills to the production of coherent and fluent written composition; to introduce them to a variety of German texts dealing with appropriate contemporary issues. (2) To improve students communicative and listening skills (oral/aural) and to expand their vocabulary so that they are able to express themselves clearly in everyday as well as in academic contexts as appropriate; to enable students to formulate their own ideas and to interact effectively in German and to adjust flexibly to various situations by using a suitable register.
Content:
(1) In respect of i. the consolidation of German language structures: this unit focuses on the various classes of words, their declension and their function within the phrase/ sentence; ii. written communication: a variety of linguistic skills are developed by means of translation into and from German and essay writing in German (2) Spoken language classes may consist of free discussions with the entire group, interactive exercises (e.g. role play, small-group discussions, one-to-one exchange of ideas). Austrian and German video material and newspaper articles form the basis for discussion and assessment, whilst improving awareness of contemporary life in the German-speaking world.

ESML0031: German written & spoken language 1B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0030
Aims & learning objectives:
The unit builds on ESML0030, pursuing the same dual aim. (1) To refresh and consolidate students knowledge and understanding of grammatical structures; enable them to apply the acquired skills to the production of coherent and fluent written composition; to introduce them to a variety of German texts dealing with appropriate contemporary issues. (2) To improve students communicative and listening skills (oral/aural) and to expand their vocabulary so that they are able to express themselves clearly in everyday as well as in academic contexts as appropriate; to enable students to formulate their own ideas and to interact effectively in German and to adjust flexibly to various situations by using a suitable register.
Content:
(1) In respect of i. the consolidation of German language structures: this unit focuses on complex grammar points and German syntax; ii. written communication: a variety of linguistic skills are developed by means of translation into and from German and essay writing in German. (2) Spoken language classes may consist of free discussions with the entire group, interactive exercises (e.g. role play, small-group discussions, one-to-one exchange of ideas). Austrian and German video material and newspaper articles form the basis for discussion and assessment, whilst improving awareness of contemporary life in the German-speaking world.

ESML0036: German written & spoken language 2A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0031
Aims & learning objectives:
To build on knowledge (grammatical accuracy and range of vocabulary) and writing skills acquired in Year 1. Having successfully completed this unit, students should be able, at the appropriate level, to: translate texts (German to English); summarize English texts into German and write short essays expressing a personal opinion on a given topic.
Content:
German to English translation, English to German summarisation, German essay-writing in response to text-based questions.

ESML0037: German written & spoken language 2B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX54 CW20 OR26
Requisites: Pre ESML0036
Aims & learning objectives:
To build on knowledge (grammatical accuracy and range of vocabulary) and writing skills acquired in Year 2 semester 1. Having successfully completed this unit, students should be able, at the appropriate level, to: translate texts (German to English) with an increased awareness of nuance of meaning; summarize English texts (as wide-ranging in topic and style as time and circumstances permit) into German and write short essays with good grammatical awareness and fluency of style, and to translate a dictated English text into German.
Content:
German to English translation, English to German summarisation, German essay-writing in response to text-based questions; extempore German-to-English translation.

ESML0048: German written & spoken language 4A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0037
Aims & learning objectives:
To refine students' ability to translate competently from German into English in a variety of contemporary registers. To develop their summarisation skills so that they are able to produce a précis in sophisticated German of a complex English text on a subject of broad contemporary interest. To enable students to write coherent, well-argued and grammatically correct essays in German in response to issues raised in complex German texts. To enhance students' knowledge of the spoken language acquired during their year abroad so that they are able to converse fluently on contemporary issues and deliver sophisticated oral presentations on topics of their choice.
Content:
Written language: (a) Translation from German into English is the focus of one of the two weekly hours. The main emphasis in this semester will be placed on dealing with texts written in more colloquial registers. (b) The second weekly hour is devoted to the production of German in summarisation and essay-writing exercises. In this semester particular attention will be devoted to developing essay-writing skills. Spoken language: The emphasis is on project work carried out both on a group and an individual basis, with the chosen topics of an appropriately complex and controversial nature.

ESML0049: German written & spoken language 4B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX38 CW17 OR27 OT18
Requisites: Pre ESML0048
Aims & learning objectives:
To refine students' ability to translate competently from German into English in a variety of contemporary registers. To develop their summarisation skills so that they are able to produce a précis in sophisticated German of a complex English text on a subject of broad contemporary interest. To enable students to write coherent, well-argued and grammatically correct essays in German in response to issues raised in complex German texts. To enhance students' knowledge of the spoken language acquired during their year abroad so that they are able to converse fluently on contemporary issues and deliver sophisticated oral presentations on topics of their choice.
Content:
Written language: (a) Translation from German into English is the focus of one of the two weekly hours. The main emphasis in this semester will be placed on translating texts written in more formal registers. (b) The second weekly hour is devoted to the production of German in summarisation and essay-writing exercises. In this semester particular attention will be paid to developing summarisation skills. Spoken language: As before, project work will be carried out both on a group and an individual basis. Additional emphasis will now be placed on developing students' presentational skills in preparation for their oral examination.

ESML0060: Italian written & spoken language 1A (ab initio)
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To give students a systematic grounding in the fundamental structures of Italian grammar, and to enable them to employ those structures correctly in short written texts within a communicative context, and orally in a variety of practical and everyday situations. Aural comprehension and oral communication skills are developed thanks to the use of audio-visual material and constant contact with native speakers. The objective is to bring students to an intermediate level of knowledge of Italian.
Content:
Written Language: The study of the basic morphological aspects of Italian grammar will be based on a textbook, with additional use of specially prepared material. Students complete a graded series of exercises in grammar and are introduced to brief translation passages. Spoken Language: conversation groups, role-playing, paired activities, supervised audio-visual activities, also leading to written practice in communicative contexts.

ESML0061: Italian written & spoken language 1B (ab initio)
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0060
Aims & learning objectives:
To consolidate the knowledge acquired in Semester 1, to complete the study of Italian grammar and syntax, to widen students' general vocabulary, to introduce them to the vocabulary of the press and contemporary writing, and to extend their aural comprehension/oral skills to a larger number of situations and contexts through contact with native speakers and the use of audio-visual material. The objective is to bring students to 'A' level standard by the end of the semester.
Content:
Written Language: The study of Italian grammar will be completed through the textbook already used in the Semester 1 module and will be integrated with handouts covering the more complex topics in Italian grammar and syntax such as the subjunctive, the gerund, and the sequence of tenses. Students work on grammar exercises and prose/translation passages drawn from contemporary sources. Spoken Language: conversation groups, role-playing, paired activities, supervised audio-visual activities leading to more creative and contextualised written assignments, continue in this module.

ESML0062: Italian written & spoken language 1A (post A level)
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To consolidate students' existing knowledge of Italian grammar and syntax, and to enable them to deploy these structures correctly in written texts and exercises. Aural comprehension and oral communication skills in practical contexts are developed through the use of authentic audio-visual material and class contact with native speakers.
Content:
Written Language: a grammar text is used to revise the fundamentals of the language and as a basis for regular exercises. Translation texts are used to familiarise students with contemporary written Italian, in particular the language of the press and modern narrative. Spoken Language: conversation groups, role-playing, supervised audio-visual classes provide practice in the spoken language and are used as a stimulus for creative written work.

ESML0063: Italian written & spoken language 1B (post A level)
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0062
Aims & learning objectives:
To expand students' knowledge of Italian grammar and syntax and to enable them to deploy these structures fluently and effectively in the production of written texts and exercises. Aural comprehension and oral communication skills are further extended through the use of advanced audio-visual material and class contact with lectors.
Content:
Written Language: more complex grammatical problems are studied with the aid of specially prepared handouts and explored through regular exercises. Excerpts from the Italian press and other authentic sources are used to expand writing skills in more formal contexts. Spoken Language: the oral activities from Semester 1, such as supervised audio-visual practice and role-playing, will continue and equip students with more sophisticated communicative skills for more formal contexts.

ESML0068: Italian written & spoken language 2A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Students must have taken either ESML0061, or ESML0063. Aims & learning objectives:
To broaden students' command of contemporary written Italian with greater emphasis on resolving complex grammatical points; to build on the communication skills acquired in the Year 1, and to improve oral proficiency and aural comprehension.
Content:
Written Language: prose and translation exercises from a variety of literary and non-literary texts; general essays. Spoken Language: role-playing, paired and group activities, dictation, summarisation of audio-visual texts in Italian, reading, conversation classes.

ESML0069: Italian written & spoken language 2B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX54 OR26 CW20
Requisites: Pre ESML0068
Aims & learning objectives:
To build on students' linguistic competence as acquired in Semester 1. To expand students' vocabulary in social and cultural areas and to develop sensitivity to style and register.
Content:
Written Language: prose and translation exercises from a variety of literary and non-literary texts; general essays. Spoken Language: role-playing, paired and group activities, dictation, summarisation of audio-visual texts in Italian, reading, conversation classes.

ESML0074: Italian written & spoken language 4A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0069
Aims & learning objectives:
To refine students' competence in written and spoken Italian; to extend the range of terminology and linguistic registers, including the political and economic. To perfect students' skills in translating texts from and into Italian in a variety of registers. To develop their summarisation skills and enable them to express complex ideas and arguments in writing. To draw upon students' periods of residence in Italy in order to strengthen oral fluency and conversational skills.
Content:
Written Language: prose, translation, summarisation (in Italian); analysis of style and register (contemporary social, political and literary). Spoken Language: précis-writing, presentations, lector-organised discussion and debate on issues linked to Year 4 Options and Italian current affairs.

ESML0075: Italian written & spoken language 4B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX56 CW17 OR27
Requisites: Pre ESML0074
Aims & learning objectives:
To further develop and consolidate students' skills in translating complex texts from and into Italian, and in developing a sophisticated argument in the form of a long essay in Italian. To enable students to converse competently and fluently and to deliver sophisticated oral presentations in Italian on social, political and cultural topics.
Content:
Written Language: prose, translation, and essay writing classes based on excerpts from the press, contemporary writers and specialised journals. Spoken Language: Oral presentations, lector-organised discussion and debate on political, social and cultural topics.

ESML0081: Russian written & spoken language 1A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To consolidate knowledge of basic grammar, broaden vocabulary and improve aural comprehension. To develop fluency in spoken Russian at the level of everyday conversation.
Content:
Prose and essay composition; translation into English; grammar revision; conversation. Students must be qualified in Russian to approximately A-level standard.

ESML0084: Russian written & spoken language 1B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0081
Aims & learning objectives:
To further consolidate knowledge of basic grammar, broaden vocabulary and improve aural comprehension. To further develop fluency in spoken Russian at the level of everyday conversation.
Content:
Prose and essay composition; translation into English; grammar revision; conversation.

ESML0089: Russian written & spoken language 2A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0084, Pre ESML0085
Students must have taken either ESML0084, or ESML0085. Aims & learning objectives:
To deepen knowledge of Russian grammar, expand lexis and develop translation skills in several registers. To give students practice in expressing themselves in writing. To improve aural comprehension and to begin to develop fluency in spoken Russian at the level of everyday conversation.
Content:
Written Language: systematic review of Russian grammar with exercises and drills drawn from a variety of sources; translations into Russian and English with discussion of grammatical points, lexis etc. Essay writing in Russian with discussion of stylistic points and vocabulary. Spoken Language: small group conversation on a range of themes; role-playing; task-based use of audio-visual material. To assist vocabulary acquisition, work in written and spoken language will be organised around themes of geography & peoples and culture & recreation.

ESML0092: Russian written & spoken language 2B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX54 CW20 OR26
Requisites: Pre ESML0089
Aims & learning objectives:
To deepen knowledge of Russian grammar, expand lexis and develop translation skills in several registers. To give students practice in expressing themselves in writing. To improve aural comprehension to the point at which the gist of a TV news item can be understood and to develop fluency in spoken Russian at the level of everyday conversation.
Content:
Written Language: systematic review of Russian grammar with exercises and drills drawn from a variety of sources; translations into Russian and English with discussion of grammatical points, lexis etc. Essay writing in Russian with discussion of stylistic points and vocabulary. Spoken Language: small group conversation on a range of themes; role-playing; task-based use of audio-visual material. To assist vocabulary acquisition, work in written and spoken language will be organised around themes of social issues, history and politics.

ESML0095: Russian written & spoken language 4A
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Pre ESML0092
Aims & learning objectives:
To consolidate knowledge of Russian grammar, further expand lexis and further develop translation skills. To enable students to translate modern literary Russian and non-technical academic and journalistic Russian, into English. To enable students to translate selected English passages into Russian, and to express ideas and arguments in writing. To improve fluency in spoken Russian.
Content:
Written Language: translation into and from Russian and discussion of grammatical points, lexis etc. Conversation and audio-visual classes. Spoken Language: discussion of selected topics on a range of themes (ecology, social issues, feminism etc).

ESML0096: Russian written & spoken language 4B
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX56 CW17 OR27
Requisites: Pre ESML0095
Aims & learning objectives:
To consolidate knowledge of Russian grammar, further expand lexis and further develop translation skills. To enable students to translate modern literary Russian and non-technical academic and journalistic Russian, into English with minimal use of a dictionary. To enable students to translate selected English passages into idiomatic Russian, and to express complex ideas and arguments in writing. To develop fluency in spoken Russian.
Content:
Written Language: translation into and from Russian and discussion of grammatical points, lexis etc. Conversation and audio-visual classes. Spoken Language: discussion of selected topics on a range of themes (culture, politics in Russia etc).

PSYC0001: Psychology 1
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: ES100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The aim of this unit is to introduce students to basic concepts and current themes and debates within psychology. Students will understand basic ideas in psychology and have a familiarity with some classic studies and methods. They will understand how psychologists approach problems of mental processing.
Content:
Lectures will be broadly based on the question "Who am I"? They will put forward the idea that in order to understand ourselves and our behaviour we need to remember that we are members of human societies with histories and cultural traditions: that who we are is, at least in part, determined by those around us, our families and our friends and the social groups to which we belong. The topics covered include: society and the individual, conformity and deviance, gender and social identity, the self, language and social life, thinking and reasoning, personality, life-span developments, clinical psychology.

PSYC0002: Mind, brain & behaviour
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an understanding, at a basic level, of brain functioning and the relationship between mind and brain. No prior biological training is required. Students will understand the basic brain functions that relate to psychological processes. They will have a introductory level understanding of consciousness and of what can be learnt from studies of brain damage.
Content:
The brain - a user's guide. How we encounter our world through our senses and how the brain processes and organises input and output. Conscious and non-conscious functioning. Sleep and dreaming. Emotions, stress and anxiety. What can we learn from brain damage and dysfunction - when things go wrong.

PSYC0003: Psychology laboratory 1
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: PR100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The unit aims to provide the basic skills required for conducting experimental and practical work in psychology. Students will understand how to plan and conduct a psychology experiment and will experience examples of classic psychological investigations. They will know how to write a laboratory report.
Content:
The unit will introduce basic concepts and methods used in experimental psychology. Students will participate in practical work, using appropriate equipment and techniques, to conduct and analyse experimental studies on a range of psychological topics. The assessed coursework consists of reports of these studies.

PSYC0004: Psychology laboratory 2
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: PR100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop competence in the design, conduct analysis and reporting of experimental and practical studies in psychology. Students will understand how experiments are designed and analysed and will be able to conduct planning, execution and basic analysis of an experimental exercise involving data collection.
Content:
Students will develop the skills and techniques of experimental psychology and conduct practical studies that involve data gathering and analysis, using appropriate equipment and techniques. Students will be assessed through practical reports of these investigations.

PSYC0005: Psychology research project 1
Semester 1
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Co PSYC0006
Aims & learning objectives:
To provide the opportunity for students to develop their understanding of research methods and the analysis of data through participation in a project.
Content:
Students will design and carry out a research project over two semesters. At the end of semester 1, they will be assessed on the research proposal. During the second semester they will conduct and analyse the project, present their findings to the class, and write up the project for assessment.

PSYC0006: Psychology research project 2
Semester 2
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites: Co PSYC0005
Aims & learning objectives:
To provide the opportunity for students to develop their understanding of research methods and the analysis of data through participation in a project.
Content:
Students will design and carry out a research project over two semesters. At the end of semester 1, they will be assessed on the research proposal. During the second semester they will conduct and analyse the project, present their findings to the class, and write up the project for assessment.

PSYC0007: Developmental psychology
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Students must have taken one of the following units: Psychology 1 (PSYC0001), Becoming a social person (PSYC0057), or The intelligent being (PSYC0058). Aims & learning objectives:
To provide an understanding of human development from infancy to old age. Students will understand how psychologists approach human development, and the main theoretical approaches. They will understand the specific methodological requirements of developmental psychology. They will understand the role of culture in human development.
Content:
This unit combines an overview of key issues in theory and method in the study of human development and addresses questions of relevance to future practitioners in psychology and other social services. How does the 'well-equipped strange' infant become a competent adult? How does language develop? The role of culture in individual development. Life 'crises' and normal transitions. How does the growing individual become a moral and social agent? The development of 'self'.

PSYC0008: Cognitive psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001, Pre PSYC0002, Pre PSYC0058
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an understanding of cognitive psychology including current methodological and theoretical issues. Students will understand the principles of human cognitive functioning, and the main debates and theoretical controversies. They will be familiar with the methodological issues surrounding research on cognition.
Content:
How psychologists model and investigate information processing, problem solving, reasoning, perception and the representation of knowledge. Consciousness, monitoring and attention. How we use tools, and their relationship to thinking. Models of mind/brain relations. Problems of logic and rationality. Individual and interpersonal factors in tasks and problems. Experts and novices. Decision making.

PSYC0009: Social psychology
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001
Aims & learning objectives:
To understand the relationship between individual, social and cultural psychological processes Students will understand the ways in which psychologists approach problems of communication and the construction of meaning. They will be familiar with the debates about the individual and the social and cultural context.
Content:
Language as dialogue and social negotiation. Rhetoric and discourse: how to persuade, argue, negotiate and interpret. The construction and communication of representation of meaning. The relationships between individual schemas, representations and lay theories, and social and cultural repertoires. Effective and ineffective communication. The role of metaphor and narrative in individual and cultural meaning.

PSYC0010: Clinical psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001, Pre PSYC0002
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce the work of clinical psychologists in the main areas of Adult Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and work with older adults. At the end of the course students should be able to set this work within the context of organisational change within the NHS and to contrast a psychological approach with other approaches, such as those of psychiatry. Students will also have more extensive knowledge of a specific psychotherapeutic technique.
Content:
The basis of psychiatric diagnosis; introduction to counselling and psychotherapy; depression; loss and bereavement; anxiety; schizophrenia; learning disabilities; older adults; eating disorders; the context of work and evaluating interventions.

PSYC0011: Psychology dissertation 1
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: OR100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To plan, execute and report a piece of original empirical research in psychology.
Content:


PSYC0012: Psychology dissertation 2
Semester 2
Credits: 12
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: DS100
Requisites: Co PSYC0011
Aims & learning objectives:
To plan, execute and report a piece of original empirical research in psychology.
Content:


PSYC0013: Models of counselling & psychotherapy
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic: Psychology
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce the main models of counselling and psychotherapy used in clinical practice. At the end of the course students should be able to set this work within the context of the main issues and dilemmas involved in working psychotherapeutically and to be familiar with some of the clinical problems that people present to a therapist. Students will also be able to formulate a clinical case.
Content:
The context within which psychotherapists and counsellors work; the main models of psychotherapy (i.e., psychodynamic, behavioural, cognitive, systemic, humanistic and group); evaluating interventions (outcome and process research); a postmodernist approach to counselling and psychotherapy.

PSYC0014: History of psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001, Pre PSYC0002
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an understanding of the History of Psychology, including the development of theory and methodology and critiques. The student will also be able to appreciate the relationship of Psychology to the development of other fields of social and cognitive science, and to the social and historical context.
Content:
This course considers the development of ideas over time, and what function a historical perspective plays in how we think about a field. It contextualises some key ideas in psychology, showing what their roots were, and how they waxed and waned, and why. By paying attention to specific people's intellectual lives, we see how the development of ideas is embedded in context and culture. Students must have undertaken 2 units from Cognitive (SOCS0089), Clinical (SOCS0091), Developmental (SOCS0088) and Social Psychology (SOCS0090) as well as the other necessary pre-requisites (SOCS0082 & SOCS0083).

PSYC0015: Economic & political psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0009
Aims & learning objectives:
The theoretical basis of this course will be on the psychological organisation of social, political, economic and ethical beliefs, and their development and aetiology. The implicit models of psychological processes that underpin expert and common-sense conceptions of rationality and ethics. The problematic nature of links between beliefs and action. The tensions between 'discourse' and 'ideology' models of explanation.
Content:
Topics include: psychological models of ideology in the organisation of beliefs; mainstream and emergent political-social beliefs (feminism, Green politics); lay beliefs, e.g., about unemployment, poverty, ethics; concepts of fairness and equity; moral development; elite beliefs - what constitutes 'legitimation'? Political propaganda and rhetoric. Social movements, social change and intergroup relations. Students must have undertaken one other unit from Cognitive (SOCS0089), Developmental (SOCS0088) and Clinical Psychology (SOCS0091), as well as the necessary pre-requisite (SOCS0090).

PSYC0016: Health psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0008, Pre PSYC0009
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce students to concepts, theory, methods and applications of health psychology. Students will be introduced to health psychology theory and methods using the concepts of social psychology and psychobiology. They will be expected to know about the range of methods appropriate to the measuring process and evaluating outcomes in health psychology. A major theme in the course questions what it means to be healthy or well and to have a good quality of life in relation to health care and investigates how this can be assessed. They will be in a position to appreciate some of the key interventions designed by health psychologists for use in clinical and non-clinical settings with patients suffering from the major chronic disease groups, e.g., cardiovascular, cancer and chronic pain conditions. The reporting of symptoms and the management of acute illness in GP consultations forms a central part of the course. Attention will be paid to the range of settings in which health care is delivered and the impact of hospitalisation and institutionalisation. The seminars provide a range of topics connected with preventing disease e.g., AIDS and on health promotion and education. Students will be expected to be able to set the psychology of health within a broad multidisciplinary context in the health and social sciences. They will be encouraged to understand not only how health care is appraised by patients/clients, but also the reciprocal role of giving care on the part of health care workers. They should be able to appraise the dynamics of organising psychological care within the health care system.

PSYC0017: Controversies in cognition
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0007, Pre PSYC0008, Ex PSYC0063
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an understanding of current issues and controversies in psychology
Content:
The course will address key issues in contemporary psychology relating to cognition, language and models of mind. These will include: problems of consciousness and the interface of neuroscience, cognitive science and philosophy; connectionist theory and its implications; the rise of evolutionary psychology; debates about culture and human development. This unit shares teaching with the postgraduate unit PSYC0063 of the same title.

PSYC0018: Mind & social being
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 CW50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0008, Pre PSYC0009, Pre PSYC0014
Aims & learning objectives:
Students should have a conceptual understanding of the social construction of knowledge. They should be able to analytically apply this understanding to the central issues of psychological research: consciousness, identity, physical and emotional being.

PSYC0019: Artificial minds: Minds, machines & persons
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: ES60 CW20 PR20
Requisites: Pre PSYC0008, Pre PSYC0025, Ex PSYC0061
Undergraduate students must have taken one of the above pre-requisites in order to take this unit. Aims & learning objectives:
This course introduces some recent research in the field of computer-based modeling and simulation of human activities which require the intelligent use of knowledge, otherwise known as Artificial Intelligence. We will approach machine intelligence through two complementary questions: could human intelligence be simulated, equaled or even exceeded by machines? Can the machine-metaphor still help us understand human cognitive and social processes? Students will understand the relevance of research in A. I. to larger questions concerning the nature of intelligence and of scientific approaches to the replication of complex attributes such as intelligence.
Content:
Machine-metaphors for human thinking and reasoning now compete with evolutionary biology and neurology for influence in both psychological and sociological approaches to human behaviour. The course will provide historical background, will introduce some of the main approaches and research projects in the field, and will set out two main areas of debate: criticisms made by AI researchers about rival approaches, and arguments of philosophers, sociologists and psychologists about the attempt to simulate intelligence. Students will become familiar with key authors and texts, and will learn to evaluate claims about computer programs relating to:
* their power, intelligence or other capabilities
* their influence upon psychological and social theory
* their continuing role in psychological and social research
* their influence on our notions of expertise, intelligence, creativity and humanity. This unit shares teaching with the postgraduate unit of the same title PSYC0061.

PSYC0020: Artificial lives: Simulation, modelling & visualisation of complex systems
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: PR60 ES40
Requisites: Ex PSYC0062
Aims & learning objectives:
This unit allows students to develop their understanding of recent applications of computer modeling and simulation techniques to cognitive and social processes. Students will be required to examine the literature relating to two influential developments simulation techniques. No prior programming or modeling experience is necessary, but practical work with simulation software will be expected. Students will understand the application of current research techniques in AI and simulation to the explanation of consciousness and to the exploration of the dynamics of group processes, and demonstrate basic familiarity with simulation software and the evaluation of its use.
Content:
This course explores the application of biological models in AI and to social processes. Students will be expected to understand the applications of computer simulation in the natural and social sciences, the methods of two major research projects(in cognitive psychology or a social science), and the implications of computer simulation for psychological theories of communication, social interaction, cognition, brain function and consciousness. Students will undertake practical projects in the form of experiments with computer models and simulation programs, and the evaluation of such programs, which will be written up as a project report. This unit shares teaching with the postgraduate unit of the same title PSYC0062.

PSYC0021: Research design & measurement
Semester 1
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX100
Requisites: Co SOCP0061
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an appreciation of measurement and quantitative research methods.
Content:
The course will introduce the student to a range of measurement methods used within psychological research, for example questionnaires and surveys. Students will develop their own competencies as well as the ability to evaluate the relative merits and applicability of different approaches.

PSYC0022: Quantitative methods
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW50 EX50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop students' understanding of and competence in, quantitative methods in psychology. The student will develop an understanding of a range of quantitative techniques together with an understanding of their application and use in research methods, and will establish competence in conducting data analysis using appropriate techniques and software.
Content:
Descriptive and inferential statistics, correlation, regression, analysis of variance, factor analysis, multivariate analysis, the use of specialised statistical software packages.

PSYC0023: Qualitative research methods in psychology
Semester 1
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an appreciation of qualitative research methods and their applications
Content:
The course will introduce the student to a range of qualitative methods used within psychological research, including interviewing, observation, analysis of discourse and text. Students will develop competence through practical exercises.

PSYC0025: About science 2: discovery, dissemination & status of scientific knowledge
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 CW50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
Continues to develop and evaluate several main views of the nature of scientific method introduced in the precursor unit (PSYC0024), using historical case studies of scientific discoveries and controversies. This unit goes on to deal with the research process, the application of science in technology and medicine, and the problematic status of science in relation to its cultural context.
Content:
Students are expected to develop an analytical and critical approach to ideas and opinions about science, and to master the use of documentary sources. All students prepare an essay and also present and defend their own views on in an assessed seminar presentation.

PSYC0026: Public knowledge 3a: history, philosophy & sociology of science
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: ES75 CW25
Requisites: Pre PSYC0008
Students must have taken either Cognitive Psychology (PSYC0008) or About science 2 (PSYC0025) in order to take this unit. Aims & learning objectives:
The course aims to enable students to develop an informed and critical view of the nature of all aspects of scientific activity and the problems arising from the differences between scientific and other approaches to problems.
Content:
Scientific, Expert and Lay Knowledge; Science and Public Understanding; Public Acceptance of Science and Technology; Science and Public Policy; Science and other Modes of Knowledge. The course is seminar based with considerable directed reading. All students will read and discuss a number of key authors in the seminars, will be expected to evaluate a number of television programs about science, and will undertake a research project.

PSYC0028: Psychology placement
Academic Year
Credits: 60
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: RT100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To provide the experience of work in a professional psychology context, to facilitate the acquisition and practice of transferable professional research skills. Students will develop planning skills, communication skills, problem-solving skills, experience group work and response to leadership, learn how to make appropriate decisions. They will have the opportunity to apply psychological knowledge acquired in the first two years of the programme. They will normally have the opportunity to undertake an independent research study under supervision, which will form the basis of their dissertation work in the final year.
Content:
Students will spend 30 weeks attached to an approved supervisor ina professional psychology field. The placement is a pass/ fail assessment based on completion of: 1. A 1500 word report of progress due after 10 weeks - 15% 2. A description of the placement for the file - 15% 3. A research proposal and ethical statement - 20% 4. A final report of 2500 words - 50%.

PSYC0057: Becoming a social person
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001
Aims & learning objectives:
To equip the student with an understanding of how we become 'social beings'. Students will understand the core questions of social psychology and the development of social processes. They will be acquainted with classic studies in social and developmental psychology and the ways in which psychologists have approached the social nature of the human.
Content:
The unit will use 'classic' studies in social and developmental psychology to address the following: How do we form early relationship and attachment? How do we make friends? How do we form impressions of others? How do we behave in groups? How do groups affect our identity? What is the basis of prejudice, discrimination and inter-group relations? How do we develop and change our beliefs and attitudes?

PSYC0058: The intelligent being
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites: Pre PSYC0001
Aims & learning objectives:
To provide a foundation understanding of cognitive processes. The student will understand the basic questions that psychologists have addressed regarding learning, memory and reasoning. They will have been introduced to the methods and theories by which research has been conducted in general psychology.
Content:
This unit will introduce some of the classic studies which address the questions: How do we learn? How do we remember? How do we reason and solve problems? How have psychologists thought about learning, remembering and reasoning? How have psychologists thought about intelligence and how has it been measured? How does intelligence develop? What is the role of emotion in our understanding of the world? What can we learn from the errors we make? The unit will highlight different approaches in psychology and where they contrast.

PSYC0059: The cultures of belief
Semester 2
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: ES70 PR30
Requisites: Co PSYC0060, Ex PSYC0046
Aims & learning objectives:
This unit provides an historical exposition of the changing relationship between major religious traditions and western science, and a critical discussion of theses about the ways in which religion and science interact. Students will be expected to demonstrate, through written assignments and seminar discussion, that they have mastered the arguments of at least two main authors or schools and can make a critical appraisal of these arguments.
Content:
Attention will be given to historical and philosophical views of the nature of religion and of science, theses about their interaction (e.g., conflict, independence, interdependence); each of the main theses will be examined in the light of recent historical and critical studies. The application by popular science writers of core scientific theories to religious and metaphysical themes is also explored. This unit shares teaching with the postgraduate unit The cultures of belief (PSYC0046).

PSYC0060: Science & religion
Semester 2
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: ES70 OR30
Requisites: Co PSYC0059, Ex PSYC0047
Aims & learning objectives:
This unit examines the roles of religious and scientific traditions in western culture with particular reference to Christian theology, traditions and religious practices, in order to provide (1) an deeper understanding of the cultural context of the ways in which Christianity and western science interact and (2) an analytical basis to evaluate claims about the implications of religious beliefs and practices for science and of scientific developments for Christianity. Students will be expected to demonstrate, through written assignments and seminar discussion, that they have mastered the arguments of at least two main authors or schools and can make a critical appraisal of these arguments.
Content:
Studies of the cultural context of historical and philosophical views of the nature of religion and of science; critical analysis of theses about their interaction; examination and appraisal of historical and contemporary claims about the implications of science for religions and of religion for science; implications for Public Understanding of Science, esp. the place of science in post-modern culture. Students will be expected to demonstrate through seminar discussion, an assessed oral presentation and an essay that they have mastered the arguments of the main authors or protagonists and can make a critical appraisal of their arguments. This unit shares teaching with the postgraduate unit Science & religion (PSYC0047).

SOCP0003: 'Race' & racism
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop an understanding of issues of 'race' and ethnicity. To examine the dimensions of discrimination and disadvantage in Britain. To analyse key policy areas to highlight the prevalence and effects of racism. To evaluate attempts to eradicate racism, discrimination and disadvantage.
Content:
Concepts of 'Race' and Ethnicity; Racial Inequality in Britain; Racism; Colonialism; Racial Harassment; Immigration; Race Relations Law; Multi-Culturalism, Anti-Racism and Education; Urban Unrest; 'Race', Racism and Policing; 'Race' and Citizenship.

SOCP0004: Family and gender
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To examine changing patterns of family and working life, the causes of these, and their implications for gender roles and for social policy, in the UK and elsewhere.
Content:
Definitions of the family; The politics of the family; The regulation of sexual behaviour, marriage & divorce; Lone parenthood; Feminist theory and the family; Childhood and children's rights; Support for families; Concepts of Family policy; The relationship between family policy and other areas of policy.

SOCP0005: Politics and the policy process
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Ex ECOI0080
Aims & learning objectives:
This unit introduces students to key concepts for analysing the policy-making process. By the end of the unit students should have a basic understanding of problems and issues in the making and implementation of social policy in Britain. This course has a common lecture programme with the Politics and Policy course, however each course has a separate seminar programme.
Content:
Each lecture covers one conceptual topic, including: Introduction to Policy Analysis; Theories of the State; Power; Models of Decision-making and Policy Formulation; Implementation; Street-Level Decision-Making; Organisational Constraints; Interest Groups and Policy Communities. The seminars apply these to topical issues in social policy.

SOCP0006: Political values & social policy
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
This unit introduces students to a range of values and principles used to justify the role of the state in social policy. By the end of the module students should be familiar with the broad range of principles and should be able to apply some of them to current debates.
Content:
Each lecture will cover one core principle, including: Need, Freedom, Equality, Justice, Citizenship, Community. The seminars will apply each to one issue or problem in contemporary social policy; for example, training schemes and equality of opportunity; citizenship and rights to a basic income.

SOCP0010: Core skills for social scientists: information technology methods
Semester 1
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: PR50 CW50
Requisites: Co SOCP0059, Co SOCP0060
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce students to basic computing skills needed to support methods modules in Years 1 and 2.
Content:
Through practical experience students will acquire basic skills in word-processing, spreadsheets, simple databases, file management, use of networked PCs and accessing remote sources (WWWeb); competence will be assessed through practicals and through successful use of skills in later methods modules.

SOCP0011: Health policies & politics
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
This course aims to develop an understanding of how health policy integrates with wider social policy issues, as well as a detailed understanding of the content and dynamism of health policy processes. As a result , students should
* understand the impact of different welfare models on health care systems in Europe and America
* understand the political forces behind health care reform in the British NHS
* understand the pressures exerted on health care systems and the range of responses that have arisen
* be able to compare and contrast the strengths of the different approaches and their uses in different settings
Content:
1. Health, health care and health policy 2. Comparing health systems: the UK 3. Comparing health systems: the USA and Europe 4. Pressures on health care systems (1) Demographic and economic changes 5. Pressures on health care systems (2) Science and technology 6. Politics of reform: 50 years of the NHS 7. Rationing and priority setting 8. Medicine and the media: the effect on policy 9. Paying for care and the mixed economy 10. Evaluating health care and health policy 11. Informing health policy: the politics of data gathering 12. The New Public Health

SOCP0034: Working with offenders
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX100
Requisites:
pre SOCP0049 or SOCP0050 for non-SWASS students Aims & learning objectives:
The aim is to examine and evaluate methods of working with convicted offenders within the criminal justice system. The context is practice and legislation. The unit is preparation for those who are considering working with offenders in a wide range of agancies and organisations, not just probation and social work. As well as having vocational relevance, this unit is suitable for those with academic and research interests. For non social work students the unit builds upon earlier learning, either from the Sociology of Crime and Deviance unit and the Sociology of Criminal Justice Policy unit, by adding perspectives from practice and the detail of legislation.
Content:
The core knowledge base comprises: community sentences;prison work; post-release supervision; National Standards for the supervision of offenders; PSRs; the value base of work with offenders; methods - theory and practice [with emphasis upon cognitive-behavioural programmes]; effectiveness and the "What works?" debate; risk assessment; working with addictions, homelessness and educational needs. Categories of offenders include: children and young offenders; women; mentally disordered offenders; sex offenders; lifers and other serious offenders.

SOCP0043: Sociology of industrial societies 1: classical theories
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: ES100
Requisites: Co SOCP0044
Aims & learning objectives:
To understand the basic sociological questions, theories and evidence of industrial society
Content:
To answer the following questions: 1) How and why is industrial society distinctive? 2) Does industrial society have a logic of social differentiation, based on conflict , control, or social order? Differences in work, authority and decision making, kinship and gender, culture and community. The theories of Marx, Durkheim and Weber.

SOCP0044: Sociology of industrial societies 2: social change & social control
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites: Co SOCP0043
Aims & learning objectives:
To understand the changing nature of industrial societies, modern and post-modern theories and evidence of social stratification, organisation and control
Content:
To answer the following questions: 1) Do industrial societies display common trends, even superseding industrialism? 2) What are the main modes of social regulation and social control in changing societies? Theories and evidence of post-industrialism, convergence, managerialism, ethnic and gender forms of social stratification in relation to social control and citizenship.

SOCP0047: Sociology of work & industry
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0044
Aims & learning objectives:
This course examines sociological approaches to the changing forms of work and work organisations. Key issues include rationalisation and bureaucratisation; the introduction and impact of new technologies; managerial and worker strategies in the control of work; conflict and accommodation at the workplace; corporate structure - ownership, control and managerialism, implications for theories of class and gender relationships. The course investigates these issues in three broad contexts: the period of early industrialisation, the development of mass production and 'Fordism' and the growth and consolidation of modern industrial structures.

SOCP0048: Understanding industrial behaviour
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0044
Aims & learning objectives:
The aim of the course is to give students a Sociological understanding of industrial behaviour, showing the competing paradigms and theories that describe industrial relationships, institutions and social structures.
Content:
The course takes students through the main debates in management and work organisation theory, looking at Taylorism and Fordism. The Hawthorne Studies and the early Human Relations School. This is followed by an analysis of the Socio-Technical School and its prescriptions. Contingency Theory and Labour Process Theory bring the debates up to the 1990s. During the course a number of case study examples are used to illustrate the key points of the differing schools.

SOCP0049: The sociology of crime & deviance
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 CW50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0044
Aims & learning objectives:
Introduction to the main sociological theories of crime and deviance. The course also provides invaluable preparation for the Sociology of Criminal Justice Policy and the necessary undergraduate training for all those who intend to do postgraduate work in the areas of crime and/or social control.
Content:
Divided into two parts the lectures and seminars cover, in the first part, the history of the sociology of crime from the late 19th century to the present day; in the second, they deal with THREE major crime-related sociological issues: class and crime, racism and crime; and gender and crime.

SOCP0050: Sociology of criminal justice policy
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0049
Aims & learning objectives:
Current research and policy issues in the criminal justice and penal systems. It will examine trends in criminal policy; the politics of policing and police accountability; the development of penal sanctions and the related issues of alternatives to custodial measures; the efficacy and equity, or lack of them, of the legal processes of the criminal courts; the role of new technologies; the management of prisons including the issues of privatisation and other issues concerning the social context of penal policy.

SOCP0051: Social structure & languages of class
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The aims of this unit are to demonstrate differences in structural theories of industrial and capitalist societies, and to develop an understanding of the ways in which classical sociological theory has been developed and changed to explain social stratification and inequality.
Content:
Parsons' AGIL framework, and the Functionalist Theory of Stratification. Althusser and 'structuralist' Marxism, contributions from the Frankfurt School. Empirical issues and evidence from the sociology of class and stratification.

SOCP0052: Theoretical issues in sociology
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0062
Aims & learning objectives:
This module examines key debates in contemporary social theory and their relationship to classical sociology. These will include such issues as: the debate over human agency versus social structure; power and knowledge; language and social interaction; modernity and postmodernity; industrialism and postindustrialism and globalisation.

SOCP0054: Power & commitment in organisations
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0044, Pre SOCP0048
Aims & learning objectives:
The aim of the course is to explore the themes of ideology, power and legitimacy in the context of organisations. To look at different methodological and empirical attempts to study these issues in enterprise and organisational contexts. By the end of the course the student will have familiarity with a number of ways of qualitatively apprehending the operation and construction of legitimate forms of management.
Content:
The course begins with the theoretical problem of conceptualising power. Students are introduced to the Marxist and Weberian approaches and to Lukes' philosophical attempt to distinguish three different dimensions. The course then looks at specific themes starting with Decision-making in enterprises and boardroom activity. Other themes are Collective bargaining, the creation of rules and industrial legality. Worker participation and consultation. Managerial strategies to gain commitment, the growth of corporate cultures, Japanisation and Human Resource Management practices.

SOCP0055: Comparative industrial relations
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES40 CW10
Requisites: Pre SOCP0043, Pre SOCP0044
Aims & learning objectives:
This course examines the changing role of trade unions in industrial societies - their relationship to the state and political parties, the significance of ideology and different national traditions; the economic and social causes and consequences of industrial conflict. Comparative cross-national studies will focus on the post-war period, conflict and maturation approaches and union responses to economic, social and political adversity.

SOCP0056: Environmental policy & the countryside
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To develop a clear understanding of the politics of the policy process as it applies to the countryside and the environment
Content:
Concern for the environment has become a radical and innovative element in European politics. By focusing on developments between the passage of the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act and the publication of the 1995 Rural White Paper the Unit explains the factors which have transformed the agenda of rural policy making. Corporatist politics and competitive pluralist politics are contrasted and special attention is given to the changing balance of private and public rights and responsibilities in the countryside.

SOCP0059: Core skills for social scientists: social research methods
Semester 1
Credits: 3
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: CW100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce students to classical, influential examples of investigations and research in various social sciences, and to introduce the main methods as well as philosophical and methodological issues raised by each.
Content:
Classical and influential case studies in political, sociological and psychological research; different types of methods; classification, quantification and meaning; controversial studies and their implications.

SOCP0060: Quantitative methods: Surveys & data analysis
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 1
Assessment: EX100
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
To introduce students to the main assumptions, concepts and methods of survey methods, sampling, descriptive and inferential statistics, and to establish basic competence sufficient for investigative, exploratory data analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). By the end of the course the students will be able to:
* use techniques for conducting a small surveys
* use a number of basic statistical techniques and tests employed in descriptive and inferential statistics
* use the basic functions of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) in analysing quantitative data
* recognise the broader theoretical and methodological issues that arise from (and accompany) the use of quantitative methods in social research.
Content:
Basic principles of surveys, construction of questionnaires and sampling; Basic descriptive statistics and Graphical Representation of Quantitative Data; Measures of central tendency and variability; Introduction to the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS); The normal distribution and z-scores; Tests of associations: An overview of tests for Nominal, Ordinal and Interval/ Ration variables; Introduction to Inferential Statistics; Estimates, Hypothesis testing and Predictions; Tests for significance for Nominal variables (the chi-square test).

SOCP0069: Social theory & social philosophy
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 2
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims & learning objectives:
The aims of this unit are to demonstrate the significance of different theories of scientific methodology for the social sciences and the distinctive contribution of the interpretivist perspective to sociological and related social sciences. Students should learn the problematic relevance of natural science models for social science and the substantive and methodological claims and value of interpretivist social theory.
Content:
Positivist models of scientific method and the interpretivist tradition in sociology: Popper, Kuhn, Winch and Weber. 'Actor-based' approaches: Goffman and ethnomethodology.

SOCP0070: Social issues in contemporary Europe
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: PR100
Requisites:
Aims and Learning Objectives: To develop student understanding of the major social themes affecting Europe today. This unit will adopt a comparative perspective that looks at the changing boundaries social agendas in place in major European countries. The course will attempt to display elements of convergence and divergence within those different and developing social agendas.
Content:
The idea of Europe as a social entity; EU developments promoting common social policies; comparative demographics regarding family, gender, employment, labour market, education, welfare and social policies. Comparative analysis of social institutions and modes of approach to common problems.

SOCP0071: Sociology of punishment
Semester 1
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites:
Aims and Learning Objectives: Sociological analysis of the changing social, cultural and political meanings of formal and informal modes of penality and custodial social regulation.
Content:
Justifications for punishment, history of imprisonment, theories of imprisonment, prison populations, current issues in imprisonment, non-custodial sentences, capital punishment, studying prisons.

SOCP0084: The politics of the welfare state
Semester 2
Credits: 6
Contact:
Topic:
Level: Level 3
Assessment: EX50 ES50
Requisites: Pre SOCP0001, Pre SOCP0002
Aims and Learning Objectives: To discuss and assess different theories of policy-making in the area of social policy. To apply them to selected current social policy issues.
Content:
Socio-economic explanations; political explanations; institutional explanations; theory of welfare retrenchment; public opinion and the welfare state; the middle classes and the welfare state; the think tanks and the welfare state; globalization and the welfare state; population ageing and pension reform; the development of active labour market policies.